Gossip Girl Bleach
by SeXysangokittygrl05
Summary: Welcome to the world of Gossip Girl. You know you love me! In this story the Bleach characters are living in New York. Some are from the upper-class, some from the lower-class; some are blue bloods, some are blue collar. Some make choices that come back to hurt them and others. And guess who's watching and telling all! That's right! XOXO Gossip Girl! Review or no updates.
1. Worst Birthday Ever!

I should warn y'all, I may need to edit this chapter, I wanted to post it while it was still Momo's birthday.

June 3rd, 2011

Momo leaned over the sewing machine working to finish the dress she was making. It was a hot day today and the factory's air conditioner was working into over time. Momo had no doubt in her mind that today was going to be her last day at work. Cut backs and lay-offs were more common these days. Momo had been working two part time jobs until cut backs at her other job resulted in being layed-off there. She had been searching hard to find another job but without any luck.

She was afraid of what it might mean if she lost this job. Chances are she would have to work as a prostitute, something she dreaded doing. But money was tight, and with no one hiring she wouldn't have much if any choice. The place that she and her foster brother Toushiro rented was cheap, but not just in price. They had each bought a used car for what, at the time seemed like a reasonable price. That was until they found out all the problems their cars had and all the repairs that needed to be done. At the moment they were making car payments and repairs for cars they weren't using. So much for it being cheaper the own a car to get around than taking a bus everywhere.

Neither of her jobs provided things like medical or dental insurance to part-time employees and they were only hiring part-time workers when she applied so she paid for those things out of pocket. She worked as much over time as she could get and made sure that she was available whenever they needed someone to come in.

She was exhausted, tired and pretty much sick of knocking herself out on a daily basis for little to nothing. She didn't mind working hard, she just didn't like working hard only to be walked all over like she often was. With the little money she was getting she wasn't always able to eat on a daily basis. She was thinner than most, underweight for even someone as petite as herself.

If she was let go from this job today she would have to be on a street corner by that evening. She was twenty-one as of today, old enough to drink. Starting work as a hooker wasn't exactly how she wanted to celebrate her birthday.

"Momo Hinamori?"

Momo froze when she heard the voice of her supervisor. She knew what was to come.

"Yes?" she answered timidly.

"You're needed in the office after you finish your shift."

"Yes, ma'am," Momo answered. She knew what was coming.

Momo finished her shift and headed for the office.

"You wanted to see me?" She asked.

"Yes. I'm sorry, but I'm afraid that you're being let go. We can't afford to have as many employees and since you haven't been here as long..."

"I understand," Momo answered, it was all she could do not to burst into tears right then and there.

"I'm truly sorry. I know its not fair, you're one of our hardest workers. If you need a recommendation than you can put us down as a reference."

"Thank you, ma'am," Momo said politely, trying to sound as calm and collected as she could.

"I'm truly sorry. Clean out your locker and collect your paycheck."

"I'm sorry too," Momo answered before leaving.

Momo started clearing out her locker and broke into tears. How did this happen? She worked hard, played by the rules and in the end it wasn't good enough.

She fell to her knees, sobbing uncontrollably.

"How could this have happened?" Momo asked herself, the question repeating itself over and over in her head.

"This is not happening, this is not happening, this is not happening," she said to herself through tears, as if saying so enough times would make her nightmare go away.

But she knew it wouldn't. This was her reality now and she was just going have time to go job hunting. But if she was unsuccessful than she would have no choice but to start work as a prostitute that evening and continue working as such until she could find a new job. Unfortunately she had no way of knowing how long that would be.

Momo got to her feet, gathered her things out of her locker, removed her name from the door, collected her paycheck and left.

Her first stop was back to her apartment where she dropped-off her stuff. Her next stop was to deposit her paycheck. After that she went searching for a new job. She checked some of the retail stores not too far away from the apartment but with no luck. No one was hiring at the moment, they couldn't afford to.

She also checked places further away but with no luck. She saw something about a store that was suppose to be opening soon. But it didn't say when and by then she and Toushiro might be out on the streets.

She knew her landlord wasn't one to show compassion for people in her situation. And he was already withholding repairs on the apartment despite the up to date payments. In the past when the pipes had busted, the the toilet had been stopped-up, and the landlord had made excuse after excuse to get out of fixing them. Momo and Toushiro had to pay for someone to come out and fix it themselves. Now the air conditioning had busted, and in this heat Momo and Toushiro had to get that thing fixed too.

Out of options Momo headed home again in tears, resigned to what she was going to have to do. It seemed like she was going to have to work as a prostitute until she found a new job. Sadly she didn't know when that would be. But she couldn't just wait and hope to find a job until then. Now she was going to have to swallow her pride and sacrifice her dignity and self-respect in order to keep from losing her home.

Once home she packed a few items into a bag and took a shower to clean-off and cool-off before she got dressed. She didn't have a whole lot of really trashy outfits but she knew that call-girls tended to dress less racy then most common hookers. Though they tended to wear more high-end fashion labels than what she could afford. She put on a short skirt and blouse, out of habit she put some bicycle shorts on under her skirt. She put on her shoes, combed out her hair, grabbed her bag and some money and left.

Meanwhile, Sousuke Aizen had just finished-up with work and was heading home. Hopefully he would be able to get some "rest" before he had to get ready for the evening's business dinner. Of course that depended on whether or not he would be able to get a call-girl on short notice, which he probably could since he had an ongoing account with a couple of the agencies. On his way home it began to rain and he noticed a young woman walking in the rain. Sousuke ordered his driver to pull over.

"Excuse me, young lady, can I offer you a ride?" Sousuke asked.

"Thank you, sir, but I'm really not that far from where I'm going," Momo politely declined.

"Perhaps, but there is no reason for you to continue walking in the rain with no rain coat or umbrella," Sousuke stated.

"Well, thank you. I guess it wouldn't hurt," Momo said, reluctantly accepting his offer and getting inside the car.

"So where are you headed to?" Sousuke asked her.

"Just a little ways up ahead," Momo answered.

"There isn't much there other than the red light district," the driver commented.

Momo became uncomfortable and started to fidget a little.

"I hope you aren't going there," Sousuke stated, noticing the way she was fidgetting.

"Well..." Momo couldn't lie, but she couldn't give an honest answer so she just looked away from him.

Sousuke noticed her reaction and realized that was exactly where she was headed.

"It is where you are headed, isn't it? How old are you?" Sousuke asked.

"I'm twenty-one, here," Momo said, handing him her driver's license to prove it.

Sousuke examined it to make sure that it wasn't a fake. When he was satisfied that it was real he handed it back to her. Sousuke decided to save himself the trouble of calling an agency and hire her for the evening.

"If you intend to work as a prostitute for the evening I would like to hire your services for the evening. I would pay you well and you wouldn't have to stand on a street corner in the rain," Sousuke offered.

Momo couldn't believe her luck. She was not thrilled about the idea of standing in the rain and having sex with multiple men so she decided to accept.

"Thank you, sir. I would happily accept," Momo replied happily.

"I'm pleased to hear it. I will be attending a business dinner this evening and normally I hire a professional for such occasions. However, I feel that hiring you would save me the time of making phone calls to find someone who will meet with my needs," Sousuke replied.

"I hope I can meet with your standards. What do you require of me?" Momo asked a bit nervous. She didn't know anything of this man and wasn't sure what to expect of him.

"In addition to your expected services, you will be accompanying me to dinner this evening. It's a formal dinner so you'll need to dress more appropriately than you are now. Don't worry, I'll send for something more suitable for the occasion. I trust that you don't object to preforming your services before we attend dinner and again afterward," Sousuke explained.

"I'm sure I can handle it," Momo said sounding a little nervous.

"Good. I may also require you to accompany me tomorrow for breakfast, in which case you may need to stay the night. I hope that won't be a problem," Sousuke continued.

"No, it shouldn't be," Momo said, though she felt a little scared at the idea of spending an entire night with a complete stranger.

"Good. I'll also send for something more suited for a formal breakfast as well."

"That would probably be best. I think my attire might not be appropriate for such occasions," Momo agreed.

When they arrived at the building where Sousuke was living Momo gasped at the sight of the place. It was fancier than any place she had ever set foot in. Sousuke noticed the young woman's surprise and smiled slightly.

The driver pulled up to the front entrance. Sousuke helped the young woman out of the car and escorted her inside.

"I take it you aprove," Sousuke stated as they entered the hotel.

"It's beautiful," Momo whispered as she looked around. The floor was marble, crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, there was a fountain in the lobby with Grecian style statues.

Sousuke escorted the young woman to the elevator and took her to his penthouse.

Upon entering, Momo was once again amazed by the lobby she was equally if not even more impressed with the penthouse. She couldn't believe that anyone like her would ever set foot in a place like this, much less be staying there for the night. She felt very out of place here and she was afraid to touch anything.

"Here, I imagine that you would like to dry-off a little," Sousuke said handing her a bath towel.

Momo hadn't even noticed that he had left.

"Thank you," Momo replied taking the towel. She dried herself off a little, feeling a little embarassed.

"Come with me," Sousuke told her.

"Yes, sir," Momo replied, quickly removing her wet shoes and leaving them out of the way by the door before following her client.

Sousuke led her to his room. Once again, Momo was amazed by what she saw. There was a king size bed with deep red and black bedsheets and pillows, the bed posts were made of dark wood as were the nightstands on either side of the bed with green marble tops and fancy matching lamps on each one. There was a door to the left upon entering into the room which led to a walk-in closet and a door to the right that led to the master bath. There was a table with two chairs by a large window which provided a view of the city. Next to the window was a large dresser.

"Have a seat. I'll be back in a minute," Sousuke told Momo before entering the bathroom momentarily. Momo obliged, taking a seat in one of the chairs.

Sousuke returned with a condom. Momo stood when he returned.

"Now, I don't know how much experience you have, my dear, so I feel the need to inform you of a few things. First of all, you have the right to say no, to change your mind about anything. If you are uncomfortable about anything you just let me know and I'll stop. I assure you, it won't affect your pay. No matter what anyone pays you, you still have the right to refuse to do anything that you aren't comfortable with," Sousuke informed the young woman in an attempt to calm her nerves.

"Thank you sir," Momo replied feeling a little less nervous.

"Now, lets get down to business," Sousuke said leading her to the bed.

Momo started to unbotton her blouse, but her nervousness cause her to fumble with the buttons. Sousuke noticed and reached over and took over for her.

"I'm sorry. I'm just nervous," Momo said, feeling a little embarassed.

"That's alright. Is there some reason that you're nervous?" Sousuke asked as her removed her blouse and undid her skirt and allowed it to fall to the ground.

"I've never done anything like this before," Momo answered, feeling more exposed and embarassed by the second.

"Are you saying that this is your first night working as a prostitute?" Sousuke asked as he removed his shirt and pants.

"Well, yes it is; but..." Momo trailed-off as Sousuke finished undressing her.

"Is there something else?" Sousuke asked as he finished undressing himself.

"Could you please be gentle?" Momo asked hesitantly as Sousuke pulled back the covers.

"Of course. I am not the kind of man who takes pleasure hurting women," Sousuke assured her.

That's when it hit him.

"Are you still a virgin?" Sousuke asked.

"Yes. I'm still a virgin," Momo answered.

Sousuke was shocked and a little disgusted with himself and what he was about to do.

'Is this girl really so desperate to sell her virginity like this? Is her situation really so bad as to do something like this? Then again, she is awfully thin," Sousuke thought as he looked her over.

"Are you sure you want to do this? You don't have to," Sousuke told her, part of him hoping that she would back out, but another part was eager to satisfy his lust.

"I'm going to have to go through with it eventually. Better sooner than later. No point putting it off," Momo answered.

Sousuke knew he shouldn't go through with it, but if she was willing to go through with it...

"If you change your mind, just let me know and I will stop. I promise, I'll pay you in full," Sousuke told her.

"Alright. If I want you to stop, I'll tell you," Momo assured him.

That was all he need to hear. Sousuke donned the condom and placing her on the bed he assumed the position, preparing to take this young woman but at the same time hoping that she would back out before it was too late.

"Are you ready?" Sousuke asked looking into the young woman's face.

Momo nodded.

"I'll be gentle, but I should warn you, this will still hurt a little," Sousuke told her.

Momo tensed a little, but nodded all the same.

"You need to relax, otherwise this will hurt more. By the way, what's your name?" Sousuke said, realizing that he didn't even know the name of the girl he was about to take.

"It's Momo," she answered.

"That's a lovely name. My name is Sousuke," he said.

And with that he took her.


	2. Getting Ready For Dinner

Momo had never felt more scared and humiliated in her life. She tried to hold back the tears as best she could. Even while the pain tore through her as she lost the innocence that she was told to save until her wedding night.

"Are you alright?" Sousuke asked, he could tell that she wasn't though.

Momo just nodded her head, after telling herself that she was.

"Are you sure? If you need me to stop, I will," Sousuke told her.

"It's okay. I'm just a little sore is all," Momo said.

"I may be paying you, but you still have the right to say no or tell me to stop," Sousuke said, brushing a strand of hair out of her face.

"It's alright. I'm just not use to doing this kind of thing," Momo said, trying to sound reassuring.

"It's alright for you to tell me if you're uncomfortable doing something. Just because you're a prostitute and I'm paying for your services doesn't mean that it's alright for me to abuse you. If you're in pain let me know and I'll stop. The last thing I want is to hurt any woman. Do you understand?"

"Yes, and thank you, sir. If I need to stop I'll let you know," Momo answered meekly.

"Good," Sousuke answered.

After about an hour or two, Sousuke finished with her and removed himself from her and fell on his back next to her.

Momo lay there for a few minutes. She felt numb inside, her head was spinning. She couldn't believe what had just happened.

Momo got out of the bed and forced herself to take a shower to get rid of all the blood, sweat and semon.

She was shocked at the size of the master bathroom. Like pretty much everything else in the penthouse, it was larger than any room in the small appartment that she shared with Toushiro.

It had a two sink vanity, an enormous shower that was seperate from the large tub.

"I'll have one of the maids help you get ready when your done with your shower," Sousuke told her.

"Thank you, sir. Aren't you going to shower first?" Momo asked.

"No, I need to send for something for you to wear to dinner and I would imagine that it might take you a little longer to get ready than it will take me. Especially if something has to be taken in, you look rather thin," Sousuke explained.

"Thank you, sir," Momo replied.

"There are toiletries in the bathroom. Feel free to use whatever you need to clean-up.

"Thank you, sir. But I brought my own, unless you would rather I use the ones you have," Momo said.

"Use whatever ever you would prefer. I'm surprised that you thought to bring your own," Sousuke commented.

"I was planning on showering before I returned home. I didn't want to risk my room mate noticing if I came home smelling like strange men," Momo explained.

"Understandable. I can imagine that would be extremely awkward," Sousuke said understandingly.

She gathered her shampoo, conditioner and body wash from her bag and entered the shower.

She felt sick to her stomach over what had happened. She still couldn't believe this was happening. She scrubbed her skin hard, trying to get rid of the feeling of filth. She washed her legs off and in between her legs, washing the semon, sweat, lubricant and her blood away. She felt so ashamed of herself and so disgusted with herself. Her grandmother would be so ashamed of her, so disapointed with her.

The only good thing about her grandmother being dead was that she wasn't around to see this day. It would've broken her heart, maybe even killed her. At least Momo wasn't going to have to live with that on her conscience.

Momo couldn't help it, she could feel the tears falling down her cheeks. If not for the fact that she had felt her eyes well-up she would've thought that it was just the shower water running down her cheeks. Of course the sobs starting to wrack her body were also indications that she was crying. She scrubbed herself all over but still she felt filthy. She sank to her knees in the shower and allowed herself a good cry. Hoping to get it out of her system. She didn't want to risk breaking down into tears during dinner. That would not be good. She had already been humiliated enough. But she knew she would be further humiliated and shamed later that night. She had agreed to do this with him both before dinner and after dinner.

Dinner, at least she would be getting a meal out of this, which is more than she would've expected tonight. Even though it was her birthday. This was definitely not her happiest birthday. Maybe this was even her worst birthday ever! She cried her eyes out about more before pulling herself together got back up and washed herself off, washed her hair and tried to remove the filth she still felt. Failing to get rid of the filth she gave-up, turned-off the water, squeezed the excess water out of her hair, stepped out of the shower, grabbed a towel for her hair and a towel for the rest of her body.

* * *

Meanwhile, Sousuke got online and made a few phone calls and got a few jewelry pieces on loan for the evening and the next morning from Tiffany's. As for her evening attire he got her a deep red dress from one of the boutiques. It strappy, with some draping across the bust and an A-line skirt. The dress was about ankle-length, he had to ask that it be hemmed for someone of about five feet tall before if would be sent-up. Being that he owned the hotel chain they had it finished-up fast. Since it was a size small and laced-up in the back there probably wouldn't be needing any other alternations. For her shoes he checked the size of her shoes and ordered some low-heel sling backs that matched the dress.

Sousuke heard a knock at his bedroom door.

"Come in, Haribel," Sousuke answered in reply to the maid.

She entered the room. She didn't have a very pleasant look on her face. She never really cared about some of his habits. Personally she would rather be off work before he brought one of his prostitutes home. Unfortunately she had to do a little extra over time tonight and she had to be there while he was having his way with the young woman he brought home.

She knew him well enough to know that he wouldn't sleep with an underage girl. Even so, that girl still looked like a teenager, a young one at that looked like she wasn't old enough to drive. Even so, she knew that he wouldn't take a girl at her word if she told him that she was old enough, even if she looked old enough. No doubt she would need to show him some form of ID with a date of birth listed.

"Did you want to see me about something?" Haribel asked. She could hear the water running in the bathroom and knew the girl was in the shower.

"Yes, would you mind staying a bit longer? The young woman may need some assistance getting ready for this evening," Sousuke explained.

"I suppose I could stay a little bit longer to help the young woman," Haribel said, a hint or two of annoyance present in her voice.

"Thank you. I trust you'll do well to make her look more appropriate enough for this dinner tonight. She's no professional and I'm not sure that she will have an easy time mixing and mingling with the other guests. She has to at least look like she belongs in order to make-up for that," Sousuke explained.

"Don't worry about it, I'll make sure she's ready for you to show her off," Haribel answered.

"Don't make her feel uncomfortable about herself," Sousuke told her. Haribel was a little surprised at what sounded like concern in his voice for a girl that he had only just met that evening.

They heard the water turn-off and a few minutes later she stepped out of the bathroom. She looked bit upset but she did a good job hiding it.

"I'm sorry if I took too long," she said apologetically.

"Not at all, I'm still working on getting a few things for you to wear for the evening as well as breakfast tomorrow," Sousuke assured her.

"I hope it isn't any trouble," Momo said.

"Not at all. By the way, Haribel here will help you get ready for the evening. Haribel, in a few minutes Momo's cothes for the evening should be here. If I'm still in the shower then I'll need you to come and get me. Understood?" Sousuke asked the maid.

"Yes, sir," Haribel answered.

"Good. Now I'll need to finish these calls," Sousuke replied.

"Of course sir. Follow me, Miss," Haribel said turning to Momo.

Momo followed her to one of the guest bedrooms where Haribel sat her down in front of a vanity with lights around the mirror.

"Now let's see what we have to work with," Haribel said removing the towel from her head allowing Momo's nearly waist-length hair to cascade down her back.

"I have to admit you have beautiful hair," Haribel complimented her.

"Thank you, that's very kind of you," Momo said feeling a little weird and uncomfortable about having someone else messing with her hair.

"I think that maybe a French twist would suit you for the evening. You need to look more sophisticated for the evening. Do you have any hairpins with you?" Haribel asked.

"No I didn't, I wore my hair down for the evening," Momo explained.

"I see. Well, hopefully Mr. Aizen thought to have one of his personal shoppers get some. In the meantime we need to dry all this hair of yours."

"Of course," Momo agreed. She could tell this woman wasn't too crazy about helping her to get ready for the evening. Personally Momo had no desire to have someone work on her like this.

* * *

Meanwhile, Sousuke finished making the phone calls to get everything Momo would need for the evening and he got into the shower. Sousuke felt rather bad about the girl and her situation. It was neither right nor fair for her to be in such a situation for her to sell herself on the street like that.

At least he would be able to keep her off the street for the night and she would be able to get something to eat. Probably better than anything she had before. Not that it would be nearly enough to make her night better. Another thing she wouldn't be on the street and he had no intention of abusing her or killing her, which would likely happen to a girl like her if she ended-up with the wrong John. Also he would be able to pay her much more than she would make on the street. Maybe she could stay off the street for a few years.

'Wait, what did it say on her driver's license under date of birth? Was it the third of January or the third of June? She said she was twenty-one, not twenty-one and a half. Today was the third of June, that would make today her birthday! This would have to be the worst birthday ever for her!' Sousuke thought to himself.

The thought that she was spending her twenty-first birthday working as a prostitute, selling her virginity no less made him feel disgusted with himself.

'Well if it is today it's too late to do any thing about that now. The least I can do to make her night go a little bit better than it's been so far,' Sousuke told himself.

Sousuke finished-up in the shower started getting ready for the evening when he heard a knock at the door.

"Come in."

"Your personal shoppers are here," Haribel replied.

"Thank you, Haribel. I'll be out there in a minute," he replied putting on a dress shirt.

"Yes, sir," Haribel replied before exiting, closing the door behind her.

After a few minutes, Sousuke came out and took care of the payment and dismissed the three women.

Haribel took the dress boxes, shoe boxes and the shopping bags to the guest bedroom where Momo was.

As the woman got closer she could hear what sounded like crying coming from the room. She opened the door and found the girl with her face buried in her hands, she was crying her eyes out. Haribel noticed that the towel, that she had used to wrap her hair up was folded-up and the girl was sitting on it.

"Is there something wrong?" Haribel asked sounding a little annoyed as she entered the room, closing the door behind her.

Momo jerked her head up in the direction of the woman. Haribel noticed the tear stains on her face and what looked like a mixture of terror, humiliation, shame and pain. Haribel felt badly for the girl.

"I'm sorry, ma'am. I just didn't want to spend my evening. I've never done anything like this," Momo explained as she wiped away her tears.

"Working as a prostitute? Having sex with a man you had just met?" Haribel asked setting the items on the bed and taking out the items until she found what she was looking for.

"Well, that too..." Momo said, trailing-off.

Haribel started working on the young woman's hair.

"What else do you mean?" Haribel asked, yanking on the girl's hair, causing her to yelp in pain.

"I've never had sex before. This was my first time..." Momo said through tears.

"Are you saying you were still a virgin?" Haribel asked, shocked by what she was hearing.

"I was until a few hours ago. Shortly after I arrived here," Momo said, trying to hold back the tears.

Haribel let go of the girl's hair. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Had this girl really sold her virginity her first night as a prostitute?

"Are you telling me that Mr. Aizen is the first man you ever had sex with?" Haribel asked.

"Yes, he is," Momo admitted.

"Are you still bleeding? Is that why you're sitting on the extra towel?" Haribel asked, starting to feel sick as the realization of what the girl was telling her began to sink in.

"Yes, ma'am. I'm sorry to cause you more work. I'm sure that you would rather not have to clean-up a lot of blood," Momo answered, holding the towel wrapped around her body close to her body, trying her best to preserve what little dignity she had left.

Haribel couldn't believe this girl. After her hellish evening she was apologizing for bleeding on some towels and probably some bedsheets after losing her virginity in such a way.

"Don't worry about it. Do you need a sanitary napkin or something?" Haribel asked as she went back to working on the younger woman's hair. This time being gentler, nicer.

"Thank you, ma'am. I have a few in my bag. It's in Mr. Aizen's room. I can go get it after you're done with my hair," Momo said.

"Don't worry about it. I can go get it. I don't think you should need to be wandering around in a towel. Especially if you're still bleeding. If you're bleeding a lot it might run down your legs and I doubt you want to be washing your legs off again before dinner," Haribel said sympathetically.

"Thank you ma'am. I appreciate it," Momo said politely. Trying to hold back her tears again.

"How old are you?" Haribel asked.

"Twenty-one," Momo answered softly.

"You look a lot younger than that," Haribel said, pinning the girl's hair-up in the back.

"My wallet is in my bag too. My license is in it," Momo said softly.

"Alright. When I bring you your bag you can show me," Haribel replied.

"Yes, ma'am," Momo said again.

Haribel finished-up with the girl's hair then went to fetch her bag.

She returned with the bag and handed it to the young woman.

Momo pulled out her wallet and once again showed her ID to someone she just met in order to prove her age.

Haribel looked at the date of birth and saw that it was the girl's twenty-first birthday!

"According to this, today is your birthday," Haribel said.

"Yes it is. This is not the way I hoped to spend it," Momo said, depression evident in her voice.

"I would think not. I would imagine that you would rather be spending it with your friends. Especially on your twenty-first birthday. I would imagine you would've been planning on going bar hopping instead of working as an escort," Haribel said. She handed Momo one of the bags and a dress box.

"I'll let you get dressed in private. I'll be right outside if you need anything," Haribel told her.

"Thank you. Umm, I do need something out of his room..." Momo said, trailing-off, a little embarrassed.

"If you're referring to your lingerie, there are some in the bag. Don't worry, knowing him, I'm sure he checked the labels on your clothes for your size before ordering anything," Haribel said before exiting the room.

Momo felt a bit embarrassed but she got to work getting dressed. She retrieved a liner from her bag and after getting over her embarassment she started getting dressed, being sure to put the liner in place and avoid getting blood on any of the new clothes. She was stunned by the dress. She had no doubt that it cost more than she could ever make in a year or at least a month. It was somewhat backless which explained why the bra was so low in the back. It was also beaded. She slipped on the dress and adjusted it a little in the back before tying it so that it wouldn't come undone, until it was time to come undone that is. She turned a little red in the cheeks at the thought. She knew she was going to be doing this again later tonight.

Momo decided to just push that thought out of her mind for the time being. She needed to get through the evening without falling apart. She decided to just think about the positive for tonight.

'I'm not on the street, in the rain. I'm not going to go hungry tonight. I'm sure that the restaurant has a good bar, so I'll be able to drink. I shouldn't have to worry about a busted air conditioner keeping me up tonight,' Momo thought to herself. That made her feel a little bit better. Maybe she would be able to get through the night without breaking down again.

She slipped on the shoes, a pair of beaded slingbacks with a two-inch heels, they fitted perfectly. She'll looked at herself in the mirror, she had to admit she did look beautiful, stunning even. She smiled a little at the way she looked.

She heard a knock at the door.

"Come in," she said.

Haribel entered.

"You look lovely. Do you need help with your makeup?"

"Thank you. I think I have some in my bag," Momo said as she reached for it.

"I'm pretty sure I saw some of the more, high class brand makeup. Here it is," Haribel said looking around and finding a MAC shopping bag. Haribel sat Momo down again and set to work on the young woman's makeup. She applied crimson lipstick, black eyeliner, mascara and eyeshadow with some silver highlight.

"There, done. You look beautiful," Haribel told the young woman.

"Thank you," Momo said shyly. She still felt self-conscious under the circumstances. She knew she was in way over her head, but there was nothing she could do about it. She was just lucky that she was going to have an evening to be Cinderella. She just wished that she could've been with someone special. But it was too late. Once again she pushed those thoughts out of her mind and put on a brave face, smiling a little.

"Here, you'll need this," Harribel said putting the makeup in a matching clutch bag with both a small strap for carrying on her arm and long strap for her shoulder, either of which could be put into the bag for different looks.

"Oh, thank you," Momo said, returning to the present.

"You'll also need your ID if you want to get something to drink. They have a well stocked bar at the restaurant, make sure you get something expensive, I think you've earned it and it is your birthday. But pace yourself. Otherwise you may wake-up with a serious hangover," Haribel added.

"Of course. I should probably take my cell phone with me so that I can call my room mate and friends to let them know that I won't be available to celebrate this evening. I feel so terrible about that," Momo said as she added her wallet with license, ID and some money in it and her cell phone.

"Of course. What do you plan on telling them exactly?" Haribel asked getting the beaded shawl.

"I really don't know," Momo said sounding a little sad. "I'm afraid of what they'll think annd how they'll react if I tell them where I am or what I'm doing. How can I ever tell them I'm working as a hooker?"

"Well you don't have to tell them tonight. That you started to work as a hooker that is. You could just tell them that you won't be able to make it home tonight, that you won't be able to go clubbing tonight. Tell them not to worry though."

"Thanks, but what if they ask for more details?" Momo asked taking the shawl and draping it around her shoulders.

"Just explain that something came-up and you'll be busy all night and that you'll be home later tomorrow," Haribel suggested.

"Thanks. I'll try that. If worse comes to worse I'll just tell them that I can't tell them right now and ask them to understand," Momo said.

"That would probably be best. Now, lets get you out of here. It's almost dinner time and I don't think Mr. Aizen wants to be late," Haribel said. She was about to escort the young woman out into the hallway when there was a knock on the door.

"We're coming," Momo called.

"May I come in first?" Sousuke asked. Haribel opened the door allowing Sousuke to enter the room. Momo was still sitting at the vanity, feeling suddenly really shy and a little afraid. Sosuke was amazed at how beautiful she looked. With the makeup she looked less like a child and more like an adult, granted a rather young one, but at least old enough to be...well...sleeping with someone his age.

"I must say, you did an really good job, Haribel. She looks lovely," Sousuke said to Haribel.

"Thank you, sir. Do you need me for anything else?" Haribel asked.

"No, thank you, Haribel. You can go home now," Sousuke said.

"Thank you, sir. Oh, one more thing, you treat that girl well. Make sure you treat her like a princess this evening. Make her feel special, she deserves it. I know it's her birthday in case you didn't," Haribel added before leaving.

"You look very lovely, Momo," Sousuke said as he walked over to where the young woman was sitting.

"Thank you, sir," Momo said looking away shyly.

"I have a few pieces of jewelry on loan for you to wear for the evening," Sousuke said placing two small Tiffany blue boxes. Opening them up them Sousuke revealed a pair of earrings each with a single pearl and a round brilliant cut diamond, in one box and in the other was matching necklace.

"They're beautiful, sir," Momo said shyly.

"Not as beautiful as you, my dear," Sousuke said helping her by placing the necklace around her necklace.

Momo fumbled a little with one of the earrings before Sousuke took over for her, taking care not to hurt her.

"Thank you, sir. I don't normally wear earrings," Momo said a little nervous.

"Well, these certainly seem to suit you," Sousuke said helping with her the other earring before placing his finger under her chin and turning her face to allow him to get a good look at her before allowing her a look at herself in the mirror. She absent mindedly touched the necklace that hung around her neck. She did look beautiful.

"Come. We should get going. We shouldn't be late for dinner," Sousuke said offering the young woman his hand. Momo took his hand, allowing Sousuke to help her up in a gentlemanly fashion. Momo grabbed the clutch and allowed him to escort her out of the room then out of the penthouse. Sousuke locked the door to the penthouse behind them before taking her by the arm and escorting her to the elevator.

"Don't worry, my dear. You look beautiful and I can assure you that some of my associates are friendly enough to treat you with at least enough respect to make you comfortable around them. Although, you should know that Shunsui is a bit of a womanizer, but I can assure you that he's harmless. And his assistant, Nanao Ise is quite good at keeping him in line," Sousuke said smiling kindly at Momo, making her feel a little more at ease.

"Juushiro is also quite the gentleman, he's kind and doesn't judge others. Byakuya, is a bit stoic and may seem rather cold, but he's decent enough. Just don't expect him to make you feel welcome. His people skills aren't exactly one of his strong suits," Sousuke warned her.

Momo smiled slightly in spite of herself.

The elevator doors opened and the two stepped in.

"That's better. You look even more beautiful when you smile," Sousuke said, causing her to smile a little more.

"Thank you, sir," Momo said shyly.

"Just relax, you'll be just fine," Sousuke told her.

When the elevator doors opened again they exited and he took her by the arm and escorted her to the restaurant where the others were.


	3. Meet, Cry, Confide, Humiliation

_Hello, Upper-Eastsiders, Gossip Girl here._

_Spotted this evening, a mysterious young woman on the arm of one of New York's most eligible bachelors, Sousuke Aizen._

_Earlier this evening someone spotted a young woman being snuck into the building several hours earlier and rumor has it that a number of personal shoppers were seen heading to the penthouse. Do we have a mystery Cinderella?_

_Only time will tell._

_You know you love me,_

_XOXO,_

_Gossip Girl_

Momo and Sousuke entered the swanky hotel where a few of the others were.

"Hey, Sousuke," a man with a long wavy ponytail greeted from the bar.

"Evening, Shunsui," Sousuke greeted his friend.

"Good evening, Sousuke," a man with long white hair greeted.

"Good evening, Juushiro," Sousuke greeted.

"Good evening, sir," a stern looking woman with wire rim glasses, long black hair that was up in the back.

"Good evening, Ms. Ise. I trust you are well," Sousuke said politely addressing the annoyed looking woman.

"Yes, thank you, Mr. Aizen," Nanao answered politely.

"Oh, lighten-up, Nanao," Shunsui said slapping her on the back. Nanao turned and glared daggers at him.

"Well, now, who is this lovely young lady?" Shunsui asked, ignoring his assistant and turning his attention to Momo.

"This is Momo. She'll be joining us this evening," Sousuke said introducing the shy young woman.

"Hello, pleased to meet you," Momo said offering her hand to shake.

"Pleased to meet you too," Shunsui said, taking her hand and kissed it causing Momo to blush and Nanao to roll her eyes in annoyance at her boss's flirting.

Before Momo could get over her shock from Shunsui's actions, Juushiro did the same as his friendirl when she offered her hand to shake, causing her to blush even more. Juushiro was never one to be judgemental of others, even those of Sousuke, so long as they didn't do any harm to someone else or do anything illegal. This girl, however looked quite young though, really young and if Juushiro didn't know his friend well enough to know that he would ask for an ID with date of birth than he would be worried for her. Worried that his friend might be sleeping with an underage girl. If Sousuke had brought this girl to dinner with him than she would have had sex with her before dinner, and would again after dinner. Sousuke was known for his lust. Even so, Sousuke was more honorable than to take advantage of a child.

Nanao politely shook Momo's hand, smiling politely. She never really cared for the casual attitudes of the day toward sex and she didn't enjoy keeping company with prostitutes during parties. She found it annoying, insulting and demeaning.

"So, has Byakuya arrived yet?" Sousuke asked his two friends.

"Not yet, but he should be arriving soon. In the meantime, why don't the two of you join us?" Juushiro replied. Sousuke's phone started ringing. Sousuke looked at the caller ID.

"Of course, I need to take this first though," Sousuke replied as his cell phone continued ringing.

"Then would you mind if buy the young lady a drink while you do that?" Shunsui asked.

Momo blushed and Nanao rolled her eyes at the man.

"Not at all, Shunshui. Just be a gentleman and behave. I don't want you to make her feel uncomfortable," Sousuke said before stepping out to take his call.

"Don't worry, Sousuke. You know I can be a perfect gentleman," Shunsui assured his friend.

"Actually, I think I should make a few calls myself. I was suppose to go clubbing with a few friends tonight and I need to tell them that I won't be able to make it," Momo said.

"Alright. Don't be gone too long," Shunsui said.

"I'll try not to be," Momo answered before stepping out.

"Popular girl I take it," Juushiro said.

"She is rather cute," Shunsui agreed. Nanao rolled her eyes.

"I'll be right back," she said stepping out herself.

"Was it something I said?" Shunsui asked.

"Or something we both said," Juushiro offered.

"What did you say other than the fact that she was a popular girl?" Shunsui asked.

"Well, Nanao may have thought that I was implying that she had other clients," Juushiro offered.

"Well it wouldn't surprise me if she did. She is rather pretty, though a little skinny if you ask me. And rather short for her age too," Shunsui commented.

"How old do you think she is?" Juushiro asked.

"I don't know, early twenties if I had to guess," Shunsui answered.

"I hope you're right, for Sousuke's sake. That young lady seems rather petite to be old enough to engage in her line of work," Juushiro phrased his sentence delicately.

"Aw, don't worry about Sousuke. You and I both know him well enough to know that he would never sleep with a woman unless he saw some ID. After all the scandals involving others from the upper-class Sousuke would never be so careless," Shunsui said certain.

* * *

Meanwhile, Nanao found Momo out in the hallway, talking to someone on the phone.

Careful not to be seen or heard she listened in carefully to hear what she was saying.

"Hey, Hisana. How are you? How was work," Momo asked her friend.

"Happy birthday, Momo! I'm doing fine and work was good, thank you. How are you?" Hisana asked, happy to hear from her friend.

"Thanks. I'm doing alright, thank you. How is Rukia?" Momo asked, trying her best to keep from breaking down into tears. She didn't know what she was going to tell her friend. How could she explain why she wasn't going to be able to go out clubbing with them, and on her birthday?

"She's doing alright. Like I said, work is going good. We've been getting a lot of business today. Mind you it's Friday and I think that the evening crowd may want to be alert for a night of clubbing as such. Speaking of which, are you ready to go bar hopping this evening? Who knows, maybe some good looking guy will buy you a drink," Hisana teased.

'If she only knew," Momo chuckled a little at the irony.

"Actually, that's what I wanted to talk to you about. I'm sorry to say this, but I'm afraid that I won't be able to make it tonight," Momo said.

"Really? I'm so sorry to hear that. But why?" Hisana asked.

"Um, something came-up and I'll be busy all evening and all night too," Momo said honestly enough.

"What could possibly be so important that you have to skip celebrating your birthday?" Hisana asked.

Momo had been afraid that her friend might ask her that. 'How am I suppose to tell her that I'm now working as a prostitute and that I'll be staying with a man who's at least a decade older than me all night and that I have already given him my virginity? Maybe I should try telling her not to worry, at least I'll be getting something good to eat tonight! More than I expected too!' Momo thought bitterly to herself.

"I... I may... have a new job. I'll be working tonight," Momo said, trying to sound normal.

"That's great news! But why do you have to work all evening and all night and on your birthday too?" Hisana asked.

"Well, it's not easy for me to explain. I'll tell you about it tomorrow. If you see Toushiro, please don't tell him anything about me finding work. Okay?" Momo said.

"Alright. But I don't understand why you wouldn't want him to know. Unless you plan to tell him yourself," Hisana said.

"It's complicated. I'll explain tomorrow. In the meantime, please don't tell him anything and please make sure Rukia doesn't say anything to him either," Momo pleaded with her friend.

"Alright, I won't tell him anything and I'll make sure that Rukia doesn't either," Hisana agreed.

"Thank you," Momo said, relief evident in her voice.

"But I expect an explanation from you tomorrow. Understood?" Hisana stated.

"Of course. I'll explain tomorrow," Momo agreed.

"I'll hold you to that. In the meantime, I'm sorry that we won't be able to go celebrate your twenty-first birthday," Hisana said feeling a little bad for her friend.

"I'm sorry too, but don't worry, I'll make it up to you guys," Momo said, trying to sound cheerful.

"Oh, don't worry about us. Maybe we can have a later celebration. Maybe next week," Hisana suggested.

"Sure. Sounds great to me. Next week it is then. Unless work gets in the way I mean," Momo said as she tried not to start sobbing her eyes out completely.

"Of course. I hope it works out for you. Especially if it pays well! After all the rough time you've had holding down a job with thanks to this economy, you deserve a break!" Hisana said.

"Thank you, Hisana. I hope it works out well for me too," Momo said, trying her best to hold back the tears and bitterness at the thought of the irony of their statements.

'If you only knew, Hisana! You might not be hoping that this job works out for me,' Momo thought bitterly.

"Well, either way, good night, happy birthday and God bless," Hisana said.

"Thanks and God bless you too, Hisana," Momo replied before hanging-up.

Before she could bring herself to make the call to Toushiro she broke down and started to cry uncontrollably. She rushed into the ladies room, hoping to be alone so that she could cry her eyes out in private.

Here she was, on her birthday, calling all her friends that she wouldn't be able to go partying with them to celebrate her own birthday. And why was she doing this? Because the economy pushed her into becoming a prostitute in order to make ends meet!

'I can't believe this is happening! What am I doing here? Why am I doing this?' Momo asked herself. Momo felt her knees give way again and she leaned against the wall for support.

'It's because you can't find any other work and you're too proud to turn to Izuru to ask for a loan! Just like you were too proud to accept his offer to help you out financially!' Momo told herself bitterly.

'I should've accepted it when I had a chance!' Momo scolded herself.

Momo cried some more, grateful that there was no one else around to see her like this. She didn't need to feel even more embarrassed than she already was. The last thing she wanted to do was make a scene.

She was crying so hard that she didn't hear the door open and the person enter or even notice them walk-up to her until they spoke.

"What's wrong?" Nanao asked, causing Momo to jump.

She looked-up to see Nanao looking down on her.

"I'm sorry, ma'am. I've just haven't been having the best day today," Momo sniffled a little.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Care to talk about it," Nanao asked sitting down on the large round fancy couch so that she was comfortable enough to have a conversation with the kinda girl who would have sex with men she barely knew for money.

"I suppose I should tell someone and since I can't tell my friends I may as well tell a stranger," Momo said, sniffling a little.

"Well have a seat and tell me about it then," Nanao said.

Momo took a seat next to her.

"I'm sorry about this. I just didn't expect to be spending my evening working as a prostitute," Momo started.

"Well, what did you expect to be doing tonight? Being a prostitute I would think that you would be use to working evenings and night. How long have you been working as a call girl?" Nanao asked.

"I'm not really a call girl. I'm just a common hooker!" Momo choked out.

"Alright, then. How long have you been working as a hooker?" Nanao asked.

"I just started working tonight and I've never been more ashamed of myself in my life," Momo answered through tears. She couldn't believe what she was saying.

"I find it hard to believe that a common street hooker would be able to afford to dress like you. What did you do before that?" Nanao asked.

"I worked various part time jobs, whatever I could get. No one has been hiring full-time workers lately. I worked mostly in clothing factories. I can probably sew just about anything. I've worked as a waitress, barista, whatever job I could get," Momo said.

"Well, what are you doing working as a prostitute?" Nanao asked.

"The bad economy has resulted in a number of cut backs. I've been working as many part time jobs as I could and working as much over time as I could and as hard as I can. But in the end I was one of the first people let go of on account that I hadn't been working as long and was only working part time," Momo told her.

"So you felt you had no other choice. When was the last time you worked a different job than this?" Nanao asked.

"Earlier today actually. I was working at a clothing factory. But once again I was one of the first people to be let go due to cut backs. I wasn't working as long as many of the others. I was expendable as well as more expensive because I worked a lot of over time," Momo said shaking her head sadly. This was by far the worst birthday she ever had.

"I'm so sorry to hear," Nanao told her sympathetically.

"Thank you. I've never felt more ashamed of myself in my entire life," Momo said, wiping tears from her eyes.

"But didn't you try to find any other work? Surely this should be a last resort," Nanao said.

"I did try find another job. I finished my shift, cleaned out my locker, collected my last paycheck, took my stuff home and deposited my paycheck and I went looking for a new job. No one is hiring right now. Not close enough to where my brother and I live. We each bought a used car that had low enough car payments and decent enough gas milage, but we didn't know at the time that there were a lot of problems with both cars. So instead of using either one of them to drive to work, we're making payments and paying for repairs on two cars that are just sitting in the parking lot of our appartment. Believe me, if I could drive myself to work I would be able to look for work further away from home," Momo explained.

"I'm sorry to hear. What about your brother? Does he work?" Nanao asked.

"Yes, he does. But he can only work part time himself and we both have to pay for our own medical and dental insurance in addition to those car payments and car repairs, rent, food and unfortunately any and all repairs around the appartment because our landlord refuses to fix anything. There isn't a whole lot we can do about him," Momo explained.

"That's really unfortunate. I take it you haven't considered taking him to court over it," Nanao said.

"We have considered it. Unfortunately we can't afford a good lawyer and if he tries to make life more difficult for us we have no where to go to get away from him," Momo explained.

"Don't you have family or friends you can stay with?" Nanao asked.

"Toushiro and I grew-up in foster care, our foster mother is dead, she died last year. She had been sick for a long time, so after I finished-up that semester I starting working part time while taking care of her. Toushiro helped too. After she passed away I felt that it would be best to take some time off from college in order to work while trying to work through my grief. I had been on a scholarship at the time and I had all As and I didn't want to risk messing it up by going back before I was ready," Momo explained.

"What about your friends? Wouldn't one of them be willing to help you?" Nanao asked.

"Several of them live in the same building. They have to put up with the same problems. One of my friends offered to help us out financially, but I couldn't accept. I didn't want to risk our friendship in any way. Knowing him he wouldn't mind making a gift of it, but I didn't want to risk becoming dependant on him if things didn't get better for us. I also didn't want his parents to think that they were right about me," Momo explained.

"What do you mean?" Nanao asked.

"We use to date at one point and his parents didn't approve of me because I was poor and they thought I was only interested in their son for his money. I wasn't dating him for his money, I'm not that kind of person. Anyway, he and I realized that we were better off as friends and we went back to being friends," Momo explained.

"I see. It must be hard working hard all day, day after day, trying to make ends meet. Maybe you should have taken him up on his offer, or atleast asked his help in finding a good lawyer to take your case," Nanao suggested.

"I realize that now. I never thought that it would get this bad or that maybe I should've asked his help finding a good lawyer. I wish now that I had, but its too late now. I've already agreed to spend the night with Mr. Aizen and I can't go back on that," Momo said.

"Prostitute or not, you can still change your mind and say no. Mr. Aizen is a decent enough man to respect your wishes," Nanao told her.

"I know, he told me as much. Mr. Aizen even said that he would pay me in full anyway. I couldn't accept that though. I was raised to finish whatever job I was given to do in full and not to accept pay for work that I haven't completed," Momo explained. "Besides, I've already sold him my virginity, I might as well go all the way," she added.

"Wait, what do you mean when you say that you already sold him your virginity?" Nanao asked sounding a little horrified. Momo just looked away feeling ashamed of herself.

"Are you tell me that Sousuke was... that he was the first man you ever had sex with?" Nanao asked.

Momo nodded her head in reply.

"I had always hoped that the first time I had sex would be after getting married. So much for that," Momo said bitterly.

"No one should have to do something like that," Nanao said sympathetically.

"I had no choice. Mr. Aizen told me that I could change my mind repeatedly. Before he and I, you know, he gave me every opportunity to, but in the end I made the choice I made," Momo said.

"Then he better pay you well. In the meantime, we should probably get back to the others. Before we do though, we should probably touch-up your make-up before we go. Do you need some help with that?" Nanao asked as she and the younger woman got up from the couch.

"Thank you. Yes, I would. I'm not use to wearing make-up and Mr. Aizen's maid took care of it. I have it in my purse though. It was just in case I needed to touch it up," Momo explained opening her bag to get the items out and handing them to her.

"That was smart of her. Your eye make-up certainly needs to be redone after all your crying," Nanao commented as Momo wiped away the smeared eye make-up. Nanao couldn't believe how young this girl looked.

'How old can she possibly be? Is she even old enough to be sleeping with him?' Nanao asked herself.

"May I ask you something personal?" Nanao asked as she started with the girl's eyeliner.

"Uh, sure. What do you want to know?" Momo asked.

"Well, foregive me for asking but how old are you?" Nanao asked moving on to eyeshadow.

"I'm twenty-one," Momo answered.

"Are you sure about that? No offense but I find that a little hard to believe when you look a lot younger than that," Nanao said before finishing-up with the eyeshadow and moving on to mascara.

"I've been asked about my age a few times today. I have my driver's license with me if you would like to see it," Momo offered.

"I think I would. It would make me feel more at ease knowing that you're at least old enough to be... doing what you're doing with someone Sousuke's age," Nanao said screwing the mascara tube closed and gathering the make-up containers up.

Momo retrieved her wallet and pulled out her license and handed it to the woman.

"Here, see for yourself," Momo said politely as Nanao took it and looked at the date of birth while she put the make-up back into the girl's purse.

"It says here that your birthday is June third," Nanao said, not missing that little detail.

"Yes it is," Momo said. As they were leaving the ladies room to rejoin the gentlemen.

"But that's today," Nanao said handing it back to Momo.

"Yeah, it is," Momo said, returning it to her wallet and her wallet to the purse.

"Are you telling me that you lost your job and then sold your virginity on your birthday?" Nanao asked in a low low voice, trying not to scream her question as they walked back to the bar.

"I'm afraid so," Momo said sadly.

"So you definitely weren't planning on spending your evening this way," Nanao said.

"Yeah, I was planning on going clubbing with my friends to celebrate my birthday. We had been planning on it for a while. Unfortunately I had to call and cancel," Momo said.

"I couldn't help but overhear your conversation earlier, I apologize for listening in. I take it you were telling your friend that you wouldn't be able to make it to your own birthday party," Nanao said.

"Yes I was and I felt really bad about that. I know that they were looking forward to having a good time tonight," Momo said.

"Well if I were you I wouldn't worry too much about their disappointment at the moment and instead worry about your situation. If you were really so desperate to sell yourself on the street corner on your birthday of all days then you are clearly in a tough situation," Nanao told her.

"I know, but at least I'll be able to get something good to eat, which is better than what I would've hoped for tonight," Momo said pointing out one bright spot to the the situation.

"On that subject, make sure you order something expensive. I don't care how much he's paying you, in light of the fact that you sold him your virginity on your birthday and you had to cancel plans for celebrating with your friends tonight; that man needs to treat you like a princess," Nanao said firmly.

"I wouldn't go that far," Momo said.

"Well I would," Nanao insisted.

"You would what, Nanao?" Shunsui asked as the two women returned to join the men again.

"I was just telling Momo that she should be treated like a princess tonight on account that she can't be out celebrating with her friends tonight," Nanao explained.

"Oh? What is she suppose to be celebrating with them?" Juushiro asked.

"It's not important. Really," Momo insisted.

"I would hardly say that a birthday isn't important," Nanao said, taking her seat on her stool next to Shunsui.

"It's your birthday?" Shunsui asked surprised.

"Well, yes it is. But it's no big deal," Momo said shyly, taking a seat on the other side of Nanao.

"Yes it is," Nanao said.

"Nanao is right. How old are you today?" Juushiro said.

"I'm twenty-one," Momo answered. She retrieved her driver's license from her purse and handed it to Nanao who handed it to Shunsui.

"Wow, you really are twenty-one today. I thought you were much younger," Shunsui said.

"I thought so too," Juushiro said looking over his friend's shoulder at her license, before adding, "well happy Twenty-First Birthday."

"Thank you, sir," Momo said politely.

"Yeah, happy birthday. This calls for a drink," Shunsui added handing the license back to Nanao who returned it to Momo.

"Thank you, sir. That really isn't necessary," Momo said, returning her license to her purse.

"Yes it is! Besides, I already said I would get you a drink. Bartender!" Shunsui called to the bartender.

"What can I get you?" The bartender asked, coming over. She was five and a half feet tall with green eyes and long black hair with was braided in the back. She was wearing a red choker and her name tag said Nemu.

"A drink for the lady," Shunsui answered.

"What will it be, my dear?" Shunsui asked turning to the young girl. Nanao rolled her eyes a little at her boss. She could tell that he was making the girl feel self-conscious.

"Um, I don't know. What would you recommend?" Momo asked, blushing at the attention this man was giving her.

"Well, they have a wide variety of wines, beers, sparkling wines and the harder drinks. They also make some mean mixed drinks here too. What taste drinks do you prefer?" Shunsui asked.

"I like sweet things and peaches," Momo answered.

"How do you feel about about bubbly drinks?" Shunsui asked.

"I like them," Momo answered.

"The lady will have a Peach Bellini with champagne or sparkling wine," Shunsui told Nemu.

"I need some ID please," Nemu responded. Momo pulled out her license again and handed it to the bartender. She hid her annoyance at having to pull out her license repeatedly.

"I see here that you are indeed twenty-one and that it's your bithday as well," Nemu commented before handing it back to her.

"Yes it is," Momo replied putting her license back in her purse, deciding to just put it inside a small pocket on the inside. Just in case someone else asked.

"I'll get you that drink," Nemu replied and she got to mixing it.

"So, how long have you been in this line of work?" Shunsui asked, trying to make conversation, and earning him a whack on the head from Nanao.

"This is actually my first night. Before this I worked a lot of part time jobs. Unfortunately this economy hasn't been very good for many businesses and cut backs are necessary for many of them in order to stay afloat. Unfortunately taking some extra shifts seems to put me at the top of the list for being let go of. It also doesn't help that I usually haven't worked as long as many of my coworkers. I also perfer not to join any unions for a number of reasons, which makes it easier for them to let me go," Momo explained.

"That's rough. I'm sorry to hear that. Tough break kid," Shunsui responded.

"Thanks. Could be worse though. I could be out on the street, in the rain too," Momo pointed out.

"That's true. In addition to bad wheather, most prostitutes have to deal with unpredictable pimps and Johns. Escorts don't have to worry as much about those problems," Shunsui pointed out, not noticing her figeting uncomfortably. Nanao noticed though and whacked him on the head again.

"Ow! What did I say this time?" Shunsui said rubbing the sore spot on his head.

"Let's not talk to her about that. I'm sure she would rather not talk about it. Seeing as it's her birthday I think she would rather not be talking to strangers about such a delicate subject," Nanao said.

"I was only pointing out that if she wasn't working for an escort agency she would be out working some unpleasant conditions," Shunsui said continuing to rub his head. Momo looked down at her hands and continued fidgeting.

Shunsui didn't notice this but Nemu did as she finished making the girl's drink and set it in front of her.

"Thank you," Momo said politely.

"What do I owe you, Nemu?" Shunsui asked.

"Just a tip. Birthday drinks are on the house," Nemu replied.

"Make it a generous one and put it on my tab," Shunsui said.

"Thank you, sir," Nemu said.

"I'll have a glass of red wine, please," Nanao said.

"Yes, ma'am. Would you like any particular wine?" Nemu asked.

"Do you have Golden Rose?" Nanao asked.

"From the Beachaven Winery?" Nemu asked.

"Yes, that's the one," Nanao answered.

"Yes, we do. It came in earlier today. I have one that I set aside for you and it's already chilled," Nemu answered. She went and retrieved the bottle from the fridge and proceded to open it.

"Thank you, Nemu. That's sweet of you," Nanao said, retrieving some money from her purse.

"I know how much you enjoy it and I expected that you would want a glass this evening," Nemu said pouring a glass and corking the bottle before placing it in front of Nanao.

"Thank you, Nemu. Here's something for you and your troubles. Put the drink on his tab," Nanao said, handing the woman several bills, more than enough for the entire bottle with taxes and shipping.

"Thank you, ma'am," Nemu replied accepting the money and putting it in her apron pocket.

"This calls for a birthday toast," Shunsui said.

"I agree," Juushiro said speaking for the first time since the women returned.

"How about another drink? Nemu, pour me another cup of sake," Shunsui said.

"She should probably use a measuring glass to serve it instead a drinking glass. Maybe then he would have an easier time remembering how much he's already had," Nanao said, whispering to Momo.

"Oh, come off it Lil' Nanao!" Shunsui said giving her another good natured slap on the back, annoying her and making her glare at him again. Which he naturally ignored again.

"I'll have a Moscato, please," Juushiro said before turning to his friend. "I'm sure she's only concerned about your health and drinking habits, Shunsui."

"Well she shouldn't since I went to the doctor today and he assured me that everything is just fine. I'm in perfect health," Shunsui said.

"Are you sure he wasn't lying?" Nanao asked slightly sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"Now why would he do a thing like that? If a doctor's patient was misinformed about their health they could die and that wouldn't look very good for the doctor now would it," Shunsui said.

"Maybe he has investments in the stock of your business competitors," Nanao said sarcastically.

Juushiro hid a chuckle.

"Thank you, Nemu. How much do I owe you?" Juushiro asked.

"Don't worry about it, Juushiro. Put it on my tab, Nemu," Shunsui piped-up.

"I already have, sir," Nemu replied, pouring him another drink.

"Smart woman. She always knows that I'm the one buying the drinks," Shunsui said.

"How can she not know?" Nanao mumbled.

"Thank you, Shunsui," Juushiro replied before turning to Nemu again and saying, "Here's something for you."

"Thank you, sir," Nemu replied pocketing her tip.

Momo felt even more embarassed by the minute.

'They probably spend more money in tips than Shiro and I can afford to spend on groceries in a month,' Momo thought embarassed. She could feel her cheeks turning pink with embarassment at the thought.

"Where is Mr. Aizen?" Nanao asked, interupting Momo's thoughts.

"Probably still talking to his brother-in-law about Masaki's birthday," Shunsui said.

'Brother-in-law? Is he married or does he have a sister?' Momo thought feeling a little wave of panic, shame, humiliation and nausea.

"Still? How long is that nut-job gonna keep him on?" Nanao asked.

"They may have some difference of opinions or maybe he has to speak with his nephew or nieces. I understand that it's suppose to be a surprise party after all," Shunsui pointed out.

'Nephew? Nieces? Maybe he does have a sister and not a wife that he's cheating on,' Momo thought feeling relieved.

"I believe it's in less than a week. If I recall her birthday is on the nineth. Meaning of course that they would have only a short period of time to get everything ready for the party if it's going to be on her actual birthday. Even less if it's going to be before that. More if it's going to be after, but then it might not be as much of a surprise," Juushiro pointed out.

"Speaking of birthdays," Nanao said, switching the topic slightly. "Weren't we about to toast another person's birthday?" She asked.

"And just whom might that be?" asked an even, stoic voice.

Momo turned toward the voice just in time to avoid having a clear shot of her face posted on the Gossip Girl website. The man the voice belonged to was tall, with long black hair and silver-gray eyes which appeared cold and calculating.

"Ah, Byakuya. We were wondering when you would be joining us," Shunsui said.

"You'll have to forgive my late arrival. This rain has slowed down traffic to a stop," Byakuya explained.

"Don't worry about it. It's just good that you made it here safely," Juushiro said.

"Thank you, Juushiro. I trust you are feeeling well this evening," Byakuya said.

"Yes, thank you," Juushiro answered.

"Shunsui, I trust you are enjoying yourself this evening," Byakuya said using the same indifferent tone of voice only with the slightest hint of amusement evident.

"Well of course, somebody has to," Shunsui replied good-naturedly.

"Perhaps, however you seem to do enough of that for everyone," Byakuya commented.

"Well, since you don't have any fun than I have to have fun in your place," Shunsui teased slapping the man on the back good-naturedly causing Byakuya to give him an annoyed look.

"Mr. Kuchiki, it's lovely seeing you here this evening," Nanao said happily and politely with a smile on her face.

"It's lovely seeing you here as well, Ms. Ise. Especially in light of the fact that Shunsui is here more drunk than a sailor on shore leave," Byakuya commented looking over the man in question with a mixture of annoyance and indifference.

"Yes, I know he's in is usual bad shape, but at least he is being enough of a gentleman so as not to completely chase away this young lady who will be joining us this evening," Nanao said indicating Momo so as to ensure that she wasn't ignored by Byakuya or treated with disdain by him either in light of the fact that she was accompanying the notorious playboy of New York.

"Ah, so I take it she's the person whose birthday are we toasting," Byakuya said in an only slightly stoic tone of voice though he still regarded the young woman with a cold expression.

Momo squirmed a little underneath his gaze.

"Yes, sir. It is," Momo answered in reply.

"I see. I didn't get your name, my dear," Byakuya said evenly.

"It's Momo, sir," Momo answered nervously.

"I see," Byakuya said simply looking the girl over.

'She's dressed sufficiently enough to pass for a member of the upper-class. However, her mannerism doesn't even suggest such an upbringing,' Byakuya thought to himself as he eyed the young woman.

"Um, pleased to meet you," she said softly as she offered her hand as if to shake.

Byakuya regarded her hand and took note of it before accepting it. Instead of shaking it he kissed it which allowed him to remain the gentleman and at the same time get a better feel for the girl and who or what she was. Taking note of the feel of her hand and seeing her nails told him a lot.

'Soft hands though not so much as to say that she never worked a day in her life the way a debutant's would. No dirt under the nails, evenly trimmed with no chips or jagged edges, but no nail polish. Looks awfully young to be in a bar. Even with all that make-up on,' Byakuya thought to himself.

"The pleasure is all mine, my dear," Byakuya said politely and gentlemanly so as to hide his true thoughts on the girl.

"Uh, thank you sir," Momo said shyly looking away in an attempt to avoid him seeing her blush. An act which fortunately for her put her face out of view of the iPhone that was snapping her picture to be posted on the Gossip Girl blog.

"You're quite welcome my dear. Happy Birthday to you as well. May I ask which birthday of yours we are toasting?" Byakuya asked taking the seat on the other side of the young woman.

"I'm twenty-one today, sir," Momo said shyly looking away and running her finger along the base of the champagne flute with her drink in it.

"Well that's a comfort in light of the fact that if you were any younger this place would lose their liquor license for serving alcohol to an underage woman.

"I would only really be underage if I were under eighteen," Momo said uncomfortably aware of how young she looked. The last thing she wanted was to create a scandal for someone by causing others to think that they had been sleeping with an underage girl.

"I was refering to underage drinking which applies to anyone under the age of twenty-one," Byakuya pointed out making Momo feel even more ridiculous by the moment.

"Of course, sir," Momo said looking down at her drink.

"I don't mean to sound crass, my dear, however your statement on being of legal age of consent leads me to assume that you're here with Sousuke," Byakuya said eyeing the girl.

"Well, yes. I am Mr. Aizen's...date, if you will. But I don't understand why that would that sound crass," Momo said shifting uncomfortably in her seat.

"Because I couldn't help but notice the fact that you would feel the need to point out that you are legally an adult. I'm also well aware of the fact that Sousuke is notorious for his womanizing. I also noticed that you seemed to have some difficulty with wording your answer and the way you said it would suggest that you are, how should I put it? Working as an escort. Although I can't help but notice that you don't seem to be as, well adjusted to working in this sort of atmosphere. I can't help but feel that you may be less an escort and more a common street walker," Byakuya said in his usual manner.

Momo could feel her face getting warmer. She suddenly felt like she had been beaten-up. Like she had been slapped across the face, punched repeatedly in the stomach, thrown to the ground and kicked repeatedly. She felt like she was going to be sick.

'I can't believe it! Just when I thought this birthday couldn't get any worse than it already was! Why did I even think that this was such a good idea in the first place? My grandmother would be so disappointed in me! I can't imagine how ashamed of me she must be looking down on me!' Momo thought feeling like she was going to cry.

"How could you say something like that?" Momo asked softly, fighting back the urge the cry, run away, run away crying, slug him, throw her drink at him, yell at him or any combination of or even all of the above. She didn't know what to do and the last thing she wanted was to show any kind of weakness in front of someone else. Especially since she already had to more than one stranger this evening.

"I was merely making an observation. However, judging by your facial expression and body language I would imagine that I was right in my conclusion," Byakuya said in his normally cold tone of voice.

Byakuya had never cared for Sousuke's decisions to bring prostitutes to these dinners. Granted he respected them enough to treat them with dignity both in and out of the bedroom or wherever they did it.

'Don't fool yourself, young lady. You may be dressed like you belong here, but you still stick out,' Byakuya thought as he looked coldly at the young woman.


	4. Conversations, Drinks, Toasts and Dinner

_Well, well, Upper-Eastsiders. It looks like our little Cinderella girl has had the pleasure of meeting eligible bachelors, Juushiro Ukitake and Shunsui Kyoraku as well as Shunsui's hard-nosed assistant, Nanao Ise. I wonder what they think of this little mystery girl. One source spotted her excusing herself for several minutes and apparently she was followed by Nanao who seems to be concerned about the little lady of the evening._

_What's wrong Nanao? Are you starting to grow soft on us?_

_And where has eligible bachelor number one disappeared to? Was that a call about your sister's surprise birthday party? Are you planning on bringing a date? Be careful, if you bring that little girl with you, your sister might think that you're trying to hook-up her twenty-five-year-old son with a hooker! We'd hate it if she thought you were trying to push your bad habits on your nephew. And if she knew you were dating someone young enough to be her child, she just might kill you. It would be a real shame if that happened!_

_It looks like Nanao has returned with the little Cinderella girl. Are you thirsty ladies? It looks like Shunsui is buying drinks again._

_What's going on with you, Shunsui?_

_Are you flirting with Cinderella?_

_Is that why Nanao keeps hitting you over the head?_

_Are you jealous, Nanao?_

_Better make sure Sousuke doesn't see you, Shunsui._

_And you better make sure Nanao doesn't tell him either._

_I don't think he would like sharing Cinderella._

_There isn't enough of her to go around._

_What's that you're drinking, Cinderella? Are you even old enough to drink that? Let's hope so. We'd hate to see the elite get into trouble because of you._

_Hope you're looking at Cinderella's ID, bartender._

_And who do we have here?_

_It looks like bachelor number four, Byakuya Kuchiki has finally made an appearance._

_So tell us, Byakuya, what do you think of little Cinderella?_

_What's this?_

_She looks a little upset._

_Or are you just playing coy with him, Cinderella?_

* * *

Momo felt even more humiliated then before. It was all she could do not to scream out in frustration and/or anger as this man sitting next to her all but called her a cheap whore.

Momo could feel her body start to shake. She didn't know how long she could take it before she started crying again. She took a deep breath in order to steady herself before she responded to his statement.

"And so what if I am? With all due respect, what does that have to do with anything?" She asked with a steady voice trying her hardest not to show how his words had affected her.

"I'm merely wondering if Sousuke has a reason for bringing a common street walker like yourself. Normally he has enough class to bring one of his usual high class call-girl as his escort for the evening instead of someone the lower-class like yourself," Byakuya stated coldly.

Momo continued to feel like someone was beating the hell out of her and she was growing tired of it.

'That's it! I've had enough of this! I'm not putting-up with it anymore,' Momo thought to herself. She turned her head enough to give him a cold eye.

"Well why don't you ask him? Frankly though, I don't see how it's any of your business," Momo shot back at him.

Byakuya glared at the young woman in front of him.

'Who do you think you are, young lady?' Byakuya thought angrily.

"Watch your mouth, young lady. Who do you think you are?" Byakuya said in a low voice.

"I know who I am. I'm not someone like you and you're right, I'm not some high-class call-girl either. But I know how to treat people. I was taught to treat people with respect and dignity which is clearly better than what you were taught. Do you honestly think that just because you're from the upper-class you can be such as jerk to other people?" Momo asked him angrily.

Byakuya was taken aback by the young woman's response. Byakuya was never the kind of man who would strike a woman, but at the moment he felt like slapping this girl across her face.

"It's hard to respect a common little harlot such as yourself," Byakuya said almost mockingly.

"Byakuya Kuchiki, that's no way to speak to a lady," Nanao scolded. Byakuya ignored her and waited for Momo to respond.

"Even so, I would've expected that someone who grew-up with money like yourself would have been taught how to act like a gentleman around a woman, regardless of her station in society. Clearly I was wrong. Clearly your parents couldn't afford to have someone teach you how to treat people properly," Momo shot back at him.

"I find it hard to believe that you were raised to respect others if you are speaking to me with that tone of voice," Byakuya responded.

"Well I was taught to respect others, but I was also taught to stand-up for myself. I was taught to speak-up against liars, creeps, jerks and bullies. I was also taught to fight back if necessary," Momo replied.

"I can believe that. For someone to grow-up to sell their body on the street like you do, I would imagine they didn't have a proper upbringing," Byakuya said mockingly.

"If what you mean by proper upbringing is whether or not the person grew-up in a rich family than you're right, I didn't have a proper upbringing. If you mean being raised by parents or family than no I didn't have a proper upbringing. I grew-up in foster care, I was raised by an old woman who wasn't permitted to adopt me or my foster brother because she was old enough to be our grandmother. She was poor compared to you and the others here, but she fed us, clothed us, kept a roof over our heads. She took care of us, disciplined us, loved us as though we were her own. She taught us the meaning of hard work. She taught us about God and Jesus. She taught us all the things that really matter. She also taught us that we are no better than anyone else and that circumstances can either result in us being more fortunate or less fortunate than others. She said that we needed to respect ourselves and others, no matter what our stations in life," Momo told the man sitting next to her.

Byakuya was shocked by the young woman's statements and it showed on his face, but only briefly. When he saw that defiant look on her face he narrowed his eyes again. Once she mentioned her foster mother teaching her to respect herself he found an opening to hit back.

"Is that so?" Byakuya said mockingly.

"Yes, that's so," Momo answered defiantly.

"Then tell me what she would think if she knew what you were doing with Sousuke," Byakuya said smugly, smirking as he did so.

Momo looked like she had been struck at his words and the smug look on his face only felt like he was rubbing salt in an open wound.

'As much as I hate to admit it he has a point. She would be so ashamed of me, but she loves me and she would surely understand. Wouldn't she?" Momo thought.

"Considering the circumstances I know she would understand my reasons for doing what I did. She would understand that I didn't know what else I could do in order to keep from going under," Momo replied.

"Is that so? When was the last time you had a job other than the one you have? Have you ever had a job other than this one?" Byakuya asked condescendingly.

"As a matter of fact I have. I have had several other jobs. Unfortunately the bad economy has resulted in repeated job losses despite working my butt-off at every job I ever took. The last time I had a job other than this one was earlier today. The factory I was working at was forced to make cut backs and since I hadn't been working there as long as many of the others I was one of the first people they let go. After finishing my last shift I cleaned out my locker, collected my last paycheck and after dropping my stuff off at home, deposited my paycheck and went looking to see if anyone was hiring. But no one is hiring. At least not anyone near enough to my appartment to walk to. Believe me, if there were any other way to keep from going under I wouldn't be here tonight. I wouldn't have sold my virginity on my birthday," Momo said.

"Hey, what are you three disussing so seriously?" Shunsui asked, drawing the attention of the three of them from the tense conversation.

"It's nothing, sir," Momo answered.

"Well, then how about that toast?" Juushiro asked taking notice of the tension between Byakuya and the two women.

'What did Byakuya say to that young woman?' Juushiro thought to himself.

"I would like that very much, sir. But could you excuse me for just a minute? I forgot to make a call to one of my friends to tell them that I won't be making it to my birthday party tonight," Momo explained.

"Of course, Miss Momo! Just hurry back soon," Shunsui said.

"Thank you, sir. I wouldn't want them to worry," Momo explained getting off her barstool and exiting the bar.

"Excuse me, gentlemen. I need to make sure she's alright. I think she might need someone to talk to, or even a shoulder to cry on," Nanao said shooting Byakuya a dirty look before following the young woman.

"What did you say to her, Byakuya?" Juushiro asked.

"What do you mean?" Shunsui asked.

"Byakuya said something to that girl to make her upset," Juushiro told his friend.

"I merely called her on what she is. I can't be blamed for her not liking what she heard," Byakuya said coldly.

"What exactly did you say to the poor girl?" Juushiro asked.

"In short I told her that I could tell she was a common street walker and she didn't like what she heard. We exchanged words and then she left," Byakuya said simply.

"What makes you think she's a hooker?" Shunsui asked.

"Despite the way she's dressed, there is no way she can be employed by any escort agency," Byakuya said.

"What makes you so sure about that?" Shunsui asked.

"When you met her were you already too drunk to notice her hands?" Byakuya asked.

"What about her hands?" Shunsui asked.

"They are neat and clean but they aren't manicured with nail polish the way an escort's would be," Byakuya explained.

"Even so, that's no reason for you to be cruel to the young lady. She must be in a desperate situation in order for her to be working as a prostitute on her birthday of all days," Juushiro answered.

"Assuming of course that she's telling you the truth about that," Byakuya replied.

"Excuse me, but before I started making her drink asked for some ID to make sure she was old enough to drink. She showed me her driver's license, sir. Today is her birthday. Can I get you something to drink, Mr. Kuchiki?" Nemu asked.

Byakuya felt a little like he had just been slapped across the face. Which he probably deserved.

"I'll have a scotch on the rocks," Byakuya responded.

"Single or double?" Nemu asked.

"Make it a double," Byakuya answered.

"Yes, sir. Shall I put it on your tab?" Nemu asked pouring his drink.

"Of course. I certainly wouldn't want you putting it on that lush's tab," Byakuya answered.

"There's no reason for you to be mean about," Shunsui pouted.

"Byakuya, I think you should apologize to her when she gets back. No one should have to spend their birthday the way she is," Juushiro said.

"If you insist," Byakuya said caving more easily than usual.

"How could you have been so mean to her in the first place? In all the years that I've known you, you've never been so cruel to any young woman, at least since high school. What's gotten into you?" Juushiro asked.

"I don't know. Maybe I'm just getting fed-up with our mutual friend's constant womanizing. Normally I don't allow it to bother me, but tonight..." Byakuya trailed-off before taking a sip of his drink.

"I can understand your frustration over all the bad press we get in the tabloids whenever someone from our circle gets in trouble with the law or hit with a paternity suit. Or when one or more of us end-up on that damn Gossip Girl blog," Shunsui said.

"You're hardly one to talk, Shunsui. If it weren't for your assistant keeping you in line, who knows how many drunk and disorderly or paternity suits you would be facing," Byakuya shot back.

"Even so, what I think Shunsui is trying to say is that you shouldn't take things out on other people. Especially innocent people like that young woman. She's only trying to survive a tough situation the only way she thinks she can. It hasn't been easy since the economy started taking a turn for the worse. A lot of businesses are failing and others are laying-off their employees," Juushiro said.

"Very well. I'll apologize to the young woma when she returns," Byakuya agreed in order to avoid a further argument.

* * *

_What have we here?_

_Little Cinderella is making another hasty exit._

_What did you say to her Byakuya?_

_What did she say to you?_

_It looked like a rather long conversation._

_Were you maybe flirting with Cinderella?_

_Were you whispering sweet nothings in her ear?_

_Or did she just misunderstand your intentions?_

_Be careful, she's already on a date with one of your friends._

_It might not be wise move for you to make a move on Sousuke's date._

_Even if she is only an escort._

_So far none of my loyal readers has been successful in getting a picture of her face, but the night's still young and dinner hasn't even started yet._

_So there are still plenty of opertunities to get a snapshot of Cinderella._

_Until then, I'll be waiting._

_Keep me posted loyal readers._

_XOXO_

_Gossip Girl._

* * *

Meanwhile, Momo ducked out of the bar and found a quiet place before taking out her cell phone and calling Toushiro.

As she waited for her friend to answer his phone she took a few moments to calm herself, taking several deep breaths as she did so. She didn't want him finding out what she was up to this evening. But what was she going to say to him when she told him that she wouldn't be attending any brithday party held for her but she also wouldn't be coming home tonight? And how was she gonna explain if he picture ended-up in the tabloids?

'It doesn't matter. I still have to call him so that he doesn't worry about me. I owe him that much at least. I just need to figure out what to say,' Momo thought to herself.

"Excuse me," Nanao said approaching her. Momo looked up as she came came to stand next to her.

"Yes, ma'am. May I help you?" Momo asked, still listening for her friend to answer.

"Are you alright? I heard a lot of the things Mr. Kuchiki said to you. They were really quite unkind. Do you need someone to talk to?" Nanao asked.

"Thank you, ma'am. Right now I'm trying to get a hold of one of my friends to let him know that- hello? Toushiro? I'm sorry. I'll have to get back to you in a little while," Momo said to the older woman before returning to her phone call.

"Of, course," Nanao replied.

"Hey, Toushiro. How are you? How was your day?" Momo asked trying to stall for time in order to come-up with an explanation to give him.

"Hey, Momo. I'm fine, thank you. Work was pretty good today. How are you? How was work?" Toushiro asked from the other end.

"I've had better days I'm sorry to say. They had to make cut backs at the factory and they let me go," Momo answered honestly.

"I'm sorry to hear that. Hopefully you'll still be able to have fun with Hisana and Rukia while you three are out celebrating your birthday. I'm sorry that I won't be able to make it myself. How about Renji or Izuru? Are either one of them going to be there?" Toushiro asked his friend.

"Actually, I won't be able to make it out clubbing tonight either. I've already called Hisana to let her know that I won't be able to celebrate tonight and I'm sure that she's already told Rukia that the partying is off for tonight. As for Renji and Izuru, Renji is working late and Izuru is out of town with his parents," Momo explained.

"I'm sorry to hear that. I take it Shuuhei isn't available either," Toushiro added.

"I'm also sure that Shuuhei is working late as well. Last time he and I spoke he said that he would probably be working late every night at least until the nineth or the tenth," Momo explained.

"I'm sorry to hear. But you haven't explained why you aren't able to go out celebrating tonight. Is there something else wrong?" Toushiro asked.

'Oh great, what am I going to tell him? That I started working as a prostitute? I can't do that, he'd kill me. Think, Momo, think,' Momo thought to herself.

"Momo? Are you still there?" Toushiro's words brought her attention back to their conversation.

"Why can't I go out celebrating tonight?" Momo said repeating his question to stall for more time.

"Yes, that is my question," Toushiro replied.

"Um, well the reason I can't is... well, it's because I..." Momo started to trail-off.

"Tell him that you're looking into a new job," Nanao told her.

"I'm looking into a new job," Momo answered.

"At night? That seems an odd time to be looking into a job,"

"Yeah, it is an odd time to be looking into a new job, but..." Momo started trailing-off again and glanced at Nanao hoping she would give her a suggestion.

"Tell him that it was the only time your potential new employer could meet with you," Nanao told her.

"It was the only time my potential new employer could meet with me," Momo answered.

"I see. What time do you think you'll be returning home?" Toushiro asked.

"What time will I be returning tonight?" Momo repeated the question again and glanced at Nanao again.

"Tell him that you might not be able to make it home tonight. And if he asks why not, tell him that you maybe working a night shift so your possible boss wants to see how well you work at night," Nanao told her.

"I might not be able to make it home tonight. My possible employer may have me working a night shift and wants to see how well I do working late hours," Momo answered.

"After working all day today? You're going to be exhausted tomorrow!"

"Well, it may not be the entire night, but since I may also be asked to do a morning shift, my potential employer is going to put me up for the night," Momo hurridly explained.

"That seems a little strange," Toushiro said.

"Well they are really considerate and don't want me to get hurt if there is an accident or something in this weather," Momo replied.

"Alright. I suppose that sounds reasonable enough. I'll probably be working all night myself. I'll probably get a nap in on a break or something," Toushiro replied.

"That's good to hear," Momo said.

"Just be careful, Momo. If you feel like you're in danger call me immediately. If the person tries to hurt you, call the police first and try to get out of there!" Toushiro warned.

"Of course. I'll be careful so don't worry. I'll see you sometime tomorrow," Momo assured him.

"Well, in that case, good night, happy birthday and God bless," Toushiro replied.

"Thank you, Toushiro. Good night and God bless," Momo replied before hanging-up. She let out a sigh of relief before returning her cell phone to her purse.

"Are you alright?" Nanao asked.

"I think so. Though I am feeling rather guilty for not telling him the whole truth," Momo said rubbing her temples a little, unknowingly blocking her face from the view of the iPhone camera of the Gossip Girl reader.

"Well what else do you think you could've told him? Are you really ready to tell him what you're doing tonight and may be doing a lot more nights for who knows how long?" Nanao asked.

"No, I'm not. But I still feel bad about being dishonest with the only brother I've ever known," Momo said.

"Come on, let's go rejoin the gentlemen," Nanao said.

"Yeah, we should do that," Momo agreed following Nanao back to the bar.

"I take it that you and your brother are close. That's rather unusual for siblings. Most siblings want to go their seperate ways as soon as possible," Nanao commented.

"Yeah, well we're not related. We grew-up in the same foster home together. We're foster siblings and best friends," Momo explained.

"That's good. It must have been hard growing-up in foster care," Nanao commented.

"Not as bad as you may think. Our foster mother was a good woman, may she rest in peace. She loved us as though we were her own. If she hadn't been old enough to be our grandmother and wasn't a widow she would've adopted us," Momo stated.

"Sounds like the two of you were lucky," Nanao said.

"Yes, we were," Momo agreed.

"Well hello, ladies. It's good to see you back. Is everything alright?" Shunsui asked.

"Yes, thank you," Momo answered cheerily.

"That's good. Now how about those drinks? You girls must be thirsty," Shunsui said.

"Yes, sir," Momo answered.

"Good. How about you sit next to me, Momo? Is that alright by you, Nanao?" Shunsui asked the two women.

"I don't mind, as long as you don't make her feel uncomfortable," Nanao answered.

"Of course I won't make her feel uncomfortable. At least not compared to Byakuya here," Shunsui said nodding in the direction of the younger man.

"Which reminds me, don't you owe Miss. Momo an apology?" Shunsui asked.

"Yes. I apologize for my statements to you, Miss. They were insensitive and uncalled for. Even more so in light of it being your birthday," Byakuya said coolly.

"I accept your apology, sir. Thank you," Momo said in reply.

"I appreciate it," Byakuya stated in the same cool tone of voice.

"That's better. I hope you'll still sit by me even though all is well with you and Byakuya here," Shusui said.

"If you would like that and as long as it's alright with Miss. Nanao," Momo said smiling sweetly.

"I don't mind at all," Nanao said taking the seat next to Byakuya.

"Alright," Momo said taking the seat next to the older man.

The women switched their drinks so that Nanao had her wine and Momo had her peach bellini.

"So how about that birthday toast?" Shunsui suggested.

"That would be a good idea," Nanao replied.

"Thank you but that really isn't necessary," Momo protested.

"I disagree. Besides, if you were out with your friends celebrating instead of stuck here with a bunch of strangers. I'm sure they would have toasted your birthday," Nanao pointed out.

"Well yes, they probably would but I don't think you should have to try to make it up to me since it's not your fault. I made the choice to start this work tonight rather than go out and celebrate with my friends," Momo pointed out.

"Just let them do so. Otherwise they'll be feeling guilty about it all night and who knows how much longer," Byakuya said in his same even tone.

"Alright, I'll let you toast my birthday, but that's it. After that I don't want a lot of fuss. I would appreciate it if we could forgo singing happy birthday. I would rather go without bringing too much attention to myself tonight. Especially since this dinner isn't about me," Momo explained.

"If you insist," Shunsui agreed.

"Well yes. I'm actually not very crazy about my friends making too much of a fuss over me. A little bit of a fuss on my birthday is alright, but a big fuss, especially in public..." Momo explained.

"Alright, I think we can agree to that. It may be a good idea to keep it low key. Especially in light of the fact that wherever Sousuke goes, the Gossip Girl followers are normally not far away. Same story with these three gentlemen. I would imagine that in light of the fact that you don't want your friends and family finding out about this it would be best if your face didn't get posted on that awful blog. Even your friends and family don't read that blog, it would only be a matter of time before someone who does recognizes you and says something in front of or to someone you care about," Nanao agreed.

"That's another reason you all shouldn't make a fuss. My brother would probably disown me if he ever found out," Momo said.

"Well, don't you think you'll have to tell him eventually?" Nanao asked.

"I'm hoping that I'll be able to find a new job before that happens. One that doesn't involve well..." Momo said trailing-off embarressed and turning red at the thought.

"That doesn't involve hooking-up with strange men?" Nanao asked.

"Yeah, that would be it," Momo said turning red.

"How about that toast? Let's have that toast," Shunsui suggested.

"Alright. That sounds good," Momo agreed.

"A very happy birthday to Momo. May she have many more happy ones to come," Nanao said raising her glass.

"Here, here."

Momo took a sip of her drink.

"What do you think?" Shunsui asked.

"It's good. Really good, thank you. It was a good choice," Momo said.

"I'm sorry it took me so long. My brother-in-law is incompitent when it comes to planning surprise parties," Sousuke said returning to the join the group.

"How is that going?" Shunsui asked.

"I can't really say for certain at this point. Hopefully he can take care of the rest on his own. And why that man has to call me at the most inconvenient times, I do not know. If it weren't for the fact that Masaki's birthday is less than a week away I wouldn't have bothered answering my phone when I saw his number on my caller ID," Sousuke said apologetically.

"No worries, Sousuke. Family is important after all. Do you know whether or not your parents are going to be there?" Shunsui asked.

"It's hard to say. They can be quite difficult at times and they're not very happy with my sister for marrying that man," Sousuke replied.

"Well, love is blind and parents can't choose who their children fall in love with. Besides, Isshin is a good man and he makes your sister happy. Your parents should be happy about that. They should also be happy that he's a doctor and he has given them those three grandchildren that they have," Shunsui pointed out.

"Indeed," Sousuke replied before turning to Nemu. "Bartender, I'll have a whiskey on the rocks, make it a double," Sousuke said.

"That bad, huh?" Shunsui asked.

"I would rather not get into it at the moment. I already have a big enough headache from that conversation alone. I would rather enjoy the rest of the evening as much as possible," Sousuke said.

"Fair enough," Shunsui answered.

"Here's your drink, sir," Nemu said.

"Thank you, Nemu. Keep the change," Sousuke said handing her a twenty.

"Thank you, sir," Nemu replied.

"Now that Byakuya's here I think it's time for dinner," Sousuke said.

The group was taken to their table. Going clockwise the group sat Momo, Nanao, Shunsui, Juushiro, Byakuya and Sousuke. The men talked business. Discussing plans for a new hotel in Paris.

Momo was mostly quiet until Nanao started engaging her in conversation.

"I remember you saying earlier that you went to college," Nanao said casually.

"Yes, I did," Momo answered politely.

"What did you major in?" Nanao asked.

"Art. I don't mean to brag but my professors said I had a talent for it. I really enjoyed it. I wanted to be an artist. Unfortunately there are so few who make a decent enough wage from their work and my brother and I have bills to pay, so being a starving artist isn't the life I really want. I'm having enough trouble with bills as it is and I don't imagine things getting better anytime soon so I'll have to put some of my dreams on hold for awhile," Momo explained.

"Well, you never know. If you put your work out there maybe you'll get discovered and then you can start working as an artis for a living," Nanao suggested.

"I would like that. However, I would still have to work at other jobs to make enough to cover living expenses and it's not easy working at multiple jobs without working as an artist," Momo pointed out.

"That is true. Then again, you never know, you might be able to work on commission someday. At least for awhile until you're discovered," Nanao suggested.

"I would have to find someone who would want to commission me to do a piece for them. I don't know many people who could afford to hire me to do the type of work that could keep me and my brother from ending-up starving and on the streets," Momo said.

"What about that friend of your's? Didn't you say that he had offered to help you out financially?" Nanao asked.

"Well yes, but I couldn't ask him for that kind of favor. I don't want to risk our friendship if I can't pay him back," Momo explained.

"That's noble of you. Maybe you could ask him to recommend you to someone looking to hire an artist," Nanao suggested.

"I thought about that once or twice but it felt wrong," Momo explained.

"Why would it feel wrong?" Nanao asked.

"Because it would still feel like I was using him. Like I was taking advantage of him and his connections in order to make money," Momo explained.

"I suppose you have a point. I also can't help but think that you may be over thinking it a bit," Nanao said.

"Maybe, but when you grow-up in foster care and at the same time have friends with money, you become very aware of just how little you have. Especially when their parents are old money snobs who look down on people from the lower classes," Momo explained.

"That must be tough. It's hard enough getting the approval of the parents of friends who are from social rank as yourself. I can only imagine how much more difficult it would be to get your friends parents to approve of you if they think you're only after their money. It's a shame since you seem like a very nice person and from the sound of it you work really hard to make a living for yourself," Nanao said sympathetically.

"I really do try. I just hope they never find out about this. It would only make this even more humiliating it already is," Momo said.

"Considering all the horrible things that Mr. Kuchiki said to you that's certainly saying something," Nanao said taking a sip of her wine.

"It really is," Momo agreed sipping her drink.

* * *

_Well, Upper-Eastsiders and all my other loyal readers, so far no one has managed to get a picture of little Cinderella's face. A few of them have tried and failed. It would seem as though luck is on her side tonight. Then again, the night is still young and then there is tomorrow morning. Don't you four gentlemen have some business breakfast in the morning? If history is anything to go by, Sousuke Aizen will certainly be getting more use of little Cinderella's services. Hope you're up to it, Cinderella. Sousuke Aizen has quite an appetite and I don't mean an appetite for food. The man has to stay in shape if he's going to continue to attract the attention of all those single ladies. Even some of the ladies who would only love to snag a man with his bank account have standards. And after all of his awkward teenage years he probably wants to have more than money working in his favor when it comes to getting a woman he wants. And since he's already had you once this evening he probably wants you again. Especially if he's going to pay a pretty penny for your new clothes. Better eat well tonight and not just because you look like you haven't eaten in awhile. Rumor has it that he isn't one for a casual quicky. From what we hear he likes to take his time. Hope you'll have enough energy to satisfy him after dinner. Don't worry though, we hear that he can be quite the gentleman. Maybe he can wait until morning if you're too tired after dinner. But if he does you'll have to get up really early tomorrow morning. Like we said, he likes to take his time and enjoy hmself. Hope you live-up to his expectations, Cinderella and then some. Otherwise you might not be eating this well again. Of course, if he really likes your work he just might want to retain your services. That could be a real rags-to-riches for you. Maybe even the closest you'll ever get to an actual Cinderella story._

_Of course, that will give us even more chances to find out your true identity!_

_Better hope that no evil stepmother or stepsisters find out._

_That could only cause trouble for you!_

_In the meantime, what are you and Nanao talking about so seriously._

_Hmm...are you growing soft on us, Nanao?_

_I don't think you've ever been this chummy with an escort before._

_Are you feeling sorry for her?_

_That would be a first._

_What makes this little lady of the evening different from the others?_

_Only time will tell._

_Don't worry loyal readers, I'll let you know when I learn more._

_You know you love me,  
XOXO  
Gossip Girl_


	5. Byakuya's Suspicions and Close Calls

I'm sorry for the delay, something happened to cause me to lose a lot of stuff that I wrote and I had to try and remember what I lost and retype it before going further in the story and writing new stuff. By the way, I would appreciate more reviews and feedback. Anyway, here we go.

* * *

"How are things going at the winery in Napa?" Sousuke asked.

"Its going quite well," Byakuya answered.

"Good. Do you think they'll have enough to ship when the hotel is done being built?" Shunsui asked.

"As long as it isn't cleaned out by a lush like yourself," Byakuya said scowling.

"Oh, lighten-up, Byakuya! You can be such a stick in the mud sometimes," Shunsui said laughing heartily.

"Unlike some people I like to be more professional when it comes to my work," Byakuya said looking annoyed.

"Oh come on Byakuya. All you do is take things seriously and I don't just mean your work," Shunsui said.

"Perhaps we should save this conversation until after we're done with the plans for the hotel," Sousuke suggested.

"Of course. I apologize for that. This can wait until later," Shunsui agreed.

"I would rather not continue this at all," Byakuya said scowling.

"In any event we need to get back to business. How is the distillery doing?" Sousuke asked changing the subject.

"It's doing well. Nanao is making sure of that," Shunsui answered.

'It's a good thing that drunk has someone like her working for him. Otherwise he would more than likely go under. Even if he didn't drink every last drop of the product his business produces,' Byakuya thought to himself.

"I trust that they'll have quality product in time for the opening and in quantity," Sousuke stated.

"Of course we will. Nanao will make sure of it even if prohibition goes back into effect!" Shunsui answered.

"Assuming of course you don't drink it all," Byakuya muttered.

"Let's save the bickering until after dinner," Juushiro suggested in order to prevent an argument.

"That would be best," Sousuke said voicing his agreement.

"Sure thing," Shunsui agreed.

"As far as I'm concerned that conversation is over. So let's continue with business," Byakuya stated.

"That's better, thank you," Sousuke said before Shunsui could protest.

"I'll make sure that there is more than enough quality whiskey ready for the grand opening in Paris and I'll also make sure that it arrives there with more than enough time to stock the bar and mini bars," Nanao assured the men before turning her attention to Momo and striking-up a conversation with her.

"Now that we've settled that. I trust that production at the brewery is also coming along, Byakuya," Sousuke said returning his attention to the hotheaded member of the group.

"Yes, I have my employees working overtime. We'll have more than enough in time to ship," Byakuya stated.

"Good. Juushiro, I trust that there will be enough of the white sturgeon to produce a substantial amount of caviar," Sousuke said turning his attention to the white haired man.

"From what I was told by my assistants we can expect a good harvest," Juushiro answered.

"Thats good. We'll have to wait until next week when the Kiras get back from their vacation to see about business on their end," Sousuke said.

"So that concludes the business part for this evening, time to relax and enjoy the rest of the evening," Shunsui said.

"Except of course the business Sousuke has with his escort," Byakuya said looking in the direct of the young woman in question.

She was talking with Nanao and was sipping her drink. Neither woman seemed to have heard Byakuya's statement.

"Not a very nice thing to say, Byakuya," Shunsui said.

"I'm merely stating a fact. Besides, I don't believe she heard me," Byakuya said.

"Even so, you shouldn't be saying mean things about someone. Especially a cutie like her," Shunsui said.

Byakuya rolled his eyes at his friend's statement. A little surprised that Sousuke hadn't said anything about what had just been said about the young woman Byakuya turned to look at his friend. When he did he saw that his friend was watching the young woman in question out of the corner of his eye and maybe even listening in on her conversation with Nanao.

Even though the business part of their dinner was over Sousuke's interest in the young woman annoyed Byakuya a little. Then again, Sousuke's need to bring an escort to these dinners never ceased to annoy him.

'Since when does Sousuke pay so much attention to the harlots that he brings to these dinners?' Byakuya thought to himself.

It was one thing if she were his girlfriend instead of a prostitute. But she wasn't his girlfriend, wasn't his mistress. She was however younger than his nephew, Ichigo.

'I hope for his sake that he isn't planning on taking that girl with him as a date to his sister's birthday party. It's bad enough that he isn't above taking escorts as dates to family events. But bringing a girl who only just turned twenty-one? That would be a whole new low for him,' Byakuya thought disgustedly.

"Hey, Sousuke?" Shunsui said bringing their friend's attention away from the young woman.

"Yes, Shunsui?" Sousuke asked.

"When and where did you say Masaki's birthday party was going to be held?" Shunsui asked in order to both change the subject and divert his friend's focus away from the girl.

"I didn't say. It's suppose to be on her birthday and they're still trying to find the right place. It's probably going to be either here or at The Cheesecake Factory," Sousuke answered.

"The Cheesecake Factory sounds like a good choice," Juushiro stated.

"Perhaps, however with all the Gossip Girl bloggers around it may not be the best place," Sousuke said.

"If we were to avoid every place where we might be seen by those obnoxious gossip mongers than we would all be hermits," Byakuya pointed out.

"I'll say. People everywhere think we're all so interesting and they're right," Shunsui said.

Byakuya rolled his eyes at this.

* * *

Dinner was rather enjoyable. Momo had a good time despite the reason she was there and the fact that she wasn't hanging out with her friends tonight. Nanao was nice enough to make her feel welcome at dinner. She talked to her and treated her like she belonged with the rest of them.

Byakuya occasionally caught Sousuke glancing over at the young woman a little longer and more often than he would with any other girl that he ever brought with him. Something about that irked him.

Later, when the girls excused themselves Byakuya took the opportunity to talk to Sousuke.

* * *

Meanwhile, as the girls were finishing up in the ladies room and touching up their makeup Momo took the time to thank Nanao.

"By the way, thank you for being so nice to me," Momo said reapplying her lipstick.

"It's no big deal," Nanao said.

"Maybe you don't think so, but you made me feel a little less awkward while here," Momo said.

"Well you're a sweet girl and you deserve to have a good evening. Especially on your birthday," Nanao said as they left the ladies room.

"That's very kind of you. It's true that I had intended on hanging out with some of my friends this evening but I'm still having a good time. And considering how earlier today I thought I would be... doing things with a bunch of strange men in the backseats of cars, in dirty back alleyways and/or sleazy motels; this has turned out to be a pleasant evening," Momo said as they walked back slowly.

"I still feel disgusted that Mr. Aizen took advantage of you like that. If he were any gentleman he would've made other arrangements involving you this evening," Nanao said a little angrily.

"Don't be mad at him. Mr. Aizen gave me plenty of opportunities to change my mind about going through with, you know," Momo said trailing off.

"I still think he should've done better by you. It's not fair that you should have to sell your virginity for any reason. Whether it be on your birthday or any other day. Your first time should've been special," Nanao said.

"Well, I was hoping to lose my virginity on my wedding night, but things just didn't work out that way. Even so, with the economy being what it is I was going to be losing my virginity by working as a prostitute anyway. At least with him it was more special than I would've thought losing my virginity as a prostitute would be," Momo said.

"Well, I guess that's one way of looking at it," Nanao said sounding a little less angry.

"And he has been a real gentleman and he did get this outfit to wear to this dinner," Momo said.

"Oh, that answers my ealier question as to how you are able to dress that way. Okay, I'll admit that he was kind enough to get that outfit for you to wear. The makeup and jewelry are nice touches too. Your hair is also quite lovely," Nanao said.

"That's nice of you to say. The jewelry is on loan and his maid fixed my hair and helped me with the makeup," Momo said.

'Considering what she's already had to do with him tonight and what she's going to be doing with him again after dinner he should buy her that jewelry,' Nanao thought to herself.

"I take it Haribel wasn't too thrilled about that. She doesn't care much for his womanizing. I hope she was nice to you though," Nanao said.

"No, she wasn't thrilled about being asked to help, but when she learned that I had sold my virginity to her boss," Momo replied.

"I'm happy to hear that she treated you well," Nanao said.

"Um, Miss Ise?" Momo wasn't sure whether or not she should ask her.

"Yes?" Nanao replied.

"Um, could I ask you something personal?" Momo asked a little nervously.

"Of course. What's wrong?" Nanao asked.

"I was just wondering..." Momo started to trail-off.

"Well, you wouldn't know how long a girl or woman is suppose to bleed after losing her virginity, would you?" Momo asked shyly.

"Why do you ask? Are you still bleeding?" Nanao asked.

"Well yes. I'm using a liner and I have more in my bag upstairs, but I'm not sure how many of those I'm gonna have to use before it stops, or if this is even a normal amount," Momo explained.

"No, I don't, but I can look it up for you if you need me too," Nanao offered.

"I don't want to cause you any trouble. You don't need to," Momo answered.

"Don't be ridiculous! I can look it up on my phone. It has internet capabilities," Nanao said getting out her phone and looking it up.

"Thank you, I appreciate it," Momo said softly.

"It's no problem. Lets head back to the bar to get another drink. You look like you could use one and I could probably use one too," Nanao said.

"Thanks, but I think we should probably rejoin the gentlemen. I would hate to be rude and keep them waiting," Momo said.

"I guess so. Though personally I would rather just talk with you without the men around," Nanao said looking-up the answer online.

"Do you really mean that?" Momo asked looking at her.

"Yes, you seem like a really nice persona. Normally I would rather avoid Mr. Aizen's dates, whether they're prostitutes or girlfriends, but you're nothing like any of the other women he's brought along," Nanao said kindly.

"That's very kind of you to say," Momo said and was about to add more when she heard the men talking as they got closer.

* * *

Byakuya had waited until the ladies had left and after a few minutes he turned to Sousuke to address his issues with him and the girl that he brought.

"Interesting choice in a date, Sousuke," Byakuya commented.

"Due to your tone of voice I believe that it would be wiser if I didn't respond to that statement," Sousuke said a little annoyed.

"Now, now, boys. Let's play nicely," Shunsui said lightheartedly.

"Indeed, there's no need to go down this road," Juushiro said.

"Maybe that's the problem. Everytime this man brings along a date, she's usually either some prostitute and if she isn't than she's some shrew of another of his future ex-girlfriends," Byakuya said annoyance evident in his voice.

"What's the big deal? It never affects his work or any of our business deals," Shunsui pointed out.

"That's no excuse. I don't care what you do in the bedroom so long as it's legal, doesn't hurt anyone, stays off the blogs, out of the news, out of the tabloids and in the bedroom where it belongs in the first place," Byakuya said.

"Aw, what's the big deal? Sousuke has been bringing dates to these meeting for years," Shunsui pointed out.

"Many men bring dates to dinner meetings, Byakuya," Juushiro pointed out.

"That's not what I'm getting at," Byakuya answered.

"Then what are you getting at?" Shunsui asked.

"Bringing his bimbos to these meetings not only reflects poorly on him it does so with the rest of us," Byakuya pointed out.

"Now that's not a very nice thing to say," Shunsui stated.

"I'm merely stating a fact," Byakuya said.

"Nobody cares about Sousuke bringing a date to these dinner meetings except you. Why can't you just let it go?" Shunsui asked.

"I suppose I should expect that kind of dismissive behavior from you considering all the time your assistant wastes trying to keep you in line," Byakuya shot back at.

"Now lets not start down this road. Someone might end up saying something that we may later regret," Juushiro said trying to put an end to the bickering.

"It's not like that hasn't happened before and we've always gotten past it in the past," Shunsui pointed out.

"That may be so but we've had such a nice evening and it would be terrible if we spoiled it because of an argument," Juushiro said.

"I have to agree. Lets just try to enjoy the rest of the evening," Shunsui said.

"I'm certain that Sousuke will be enjoying the rest of his evening. Seeing as we all know what he's going to be doing that that poor girl later on," Byakuya said.

"If you've got something to say then say it, Byakuya," Sousuke said a little annoyed.

"I'm fed-up with your behavior involving women. While you may not be an abusive man and have never violated a woman you don't seem too concerned about using them to satisfy your lust," Byakuya said.

"I think I've heard enough," Sousuke said.

"No, I think you need to hear what I have to say," Byakuya replied.

"Now lets not start fighting. Lets have another round of drinks instead," Shunsui suggested.

"And don't get me started on you," Byakuya said.

"What's that suppose to mean?" Shunsui asked.

"If Nanao didn't keep you in line who knows what kind of trouble you would cause? You're just as much a womanizer as Sousuke. And on top of that you're also a lush," Byakuya answered.

"I may be a lush and a lecher but at least I never would have said anything cruel to any woman the way you did that poor young girl," Shunsui shot back.

"What are you talking about? What did you say to that girl?" Sousuke asked.

"Don't worry about it. The issue has already been resolved. Byakuya apologized to the young woman and she accepted his apology. So I don't see any reason to bring it back up," Juushiro said hoping to end the line of conversation before things go ugly.

"Very well, though if he said something to upset her I would like to know what it is if she's upset by it," Sousuke said.

"And that's another thing. I saw the way you were looking at her after the meeting," Byakuya said.

This caught the attention of Shunsui and Juushiro who were intrigued by what the man had to say.

"What are you talking about?" Sousuke asked.

"Don't insult me, Sousuke. I saw the way you were looking at her. In all the years that I've known you I don't believe I've ever seen you look at any woman that way. Not even one of your girlfriends," Byakuya said.

"Is that so?" Shunsui asked, smiling mischievously.

"If I was watching her it was only out of concern for her and to see if she was doing alright. She's had a rough day and I wouldn't want have any more of a rough time than she's already had this evening," Sousuke said.

"Is that so? How considerate of you," Byakuya said sounding a little annoyed.

"What is that suppose to mean?" Sousuke asked.

"I've never known you to be so considerate and caring of any woman. Even the women in your family don't seem to rank that kind of consideration," Byakuya said.

"What do you mean by that?" Sousuke asked.

"I've never known you to be too concerned with showing very much consideration for the women in your family," Byakuya said.

"How so? How have I not shown consideration for the women in my family?" Sousuke asked.

"Well I can't imagine that they enjoy having you bring escorts to family functions as your plus one," Byakuya said.

"Now that's enough. Besides, many single men in our circles take escorts as their plus one to various events," Shunsui pointed out.

"This is true," Juushiro agreed.

"I can't imagine that making it any less insulting and demeaning to his sister or her daughters when he throws it in their faces by bringing a prostitute as his date. Not that bringing one of those shrews that he's had as girlfriends in the past were any better," Byakuya said.

"I can't argue with you there. I must admit that I haven't always had the best taste in women. I've certainly made my fair share of mistakes when it comes to dating," Sousuke agreed.

"I'm also quite disgusted with what you did with that girl earlier this evening and what you intend to do with her again tonight," Byakuya added.

"And what business is that of yours?" Sousuke added.

"I've known you a long time but your treatment of women and using them to get what you want has never ceased to disgust me. The way you're taking advantage of that girl is the worst yet," Byakuya said.

"If you weren't so selfish and so concerned with satisfying your own selfish needs than that girl wouldn't be here. Especially on her birthday. Because of you she had to cancel plans with her friends," Byakuya pointed out.

"If I hadn't hired her for the evening she would be working on the streets and in the rain. She would be in the rain, in an alley somewhere, in the back seat of a car or a sleazy motel somewhere. Assuming of course that she didn't already end-up in the morgue. Girls like her don't belong on the streets and don't tend to last very long," Sousuke pointed out.

"So what you're saying is that you saved that poor girl by hiring her to satisfy your lust?" Byakuya asked.

"Well that is one way of looking at it," Shunsui said.

"While I don't care for some of Sousuke's habits," Juushiro started.

"And hobbies," Shunsui added.

"While I don't care much for some of his behavior in a way he did do that girl a favor," Juushiro said.

"Are you saying that justifies his actions?" Byakuya asked.

"Well maybe not necessarily, but she is still better of than she would have been if not for Sousuke," Juushiro pointed out.

"That doesn't justify him taking advantage of that girl the way he did. Especially since it's her birthday. No young woman should have to cancel plans to spend time with her friends on her birthday," Byakuya said.

"Even if I hadn't hired her for the evening she still would have needed to cancel her previous plans for the evening. I may have been the one who hired her but she was already heading for the red light district when our paths crossed," Sousuke pointed out.

Unknown to them, Nanao and Momo were returning and were within earshot when Byakuya responded.

* * *

_Hello again, faithful readers._

_Gossip Girl here._

_So far none of you have been able to get a shot of Cinderella's face._

_Is something wrong or is she just good at dodging the camera?_

_Lets see that pretty little face of yours, Cinderella._

_Meanwhile, what are our four eligible bachelors talking about so seriously?_

_Is something wrong, boys?_

_Why so serious, boys?_

_Byakuya didn't seem too pleased to see the little Cinderella girl earlier this evening._

_Is that what you four are talking about so seriously?_

_Did Byakuya say something mean to Cinderella?_

_Did he just tell Sousuke about it or was it one of the other two gentlemen who were at the bar when you arrived?_

_Lets hope this doesn't come between you guys._

_Wouldn't that have a negative effect on business?_

_Isn't it suppose to be bros before hoes, or have things changed._

_Earlier at dinner, Byakuya seemed to notice that Sousuke was watching __while Cinderella and Nanao were talking together._

___Whats up, Sousuke?_

___Are you a little taken with Cinderella?_

___How do you feel about that, Byakuya?_

___Afraid that Cinderella will become a bit of an obsession for Sousuke?_

___If so are you afraid that it could prove to be a problem for business._

___Lets hope that it doesn't come to that._

___I'm sure that Sousuke can prioritize._

___After all, it hasn't been an issue when he was dating in the past._

___Of course, none of his ex girlfriends looked like they were younger than his nephew!_

___Lets hope none of you get into any legal trouble because of Cinderella._

___Legal trouble is bad for business and when a business suffers so do the employees._

___Keep your noses clean, boys._

___But maybe not too clean._

___We still want to have something to talk about._

* * *

Momo and Nanao were still out of sight of the four men, but were within earshot when Byakuya responded to Sousuke's latest statement.

"Even so, I'm no less disgusted with you for hiring that girl tonight for her services, much less bringing her to this dinner," Byakuya stated.

"Oh come on, Byakuya! Get off that high horse of yours and stop being such an old stick in the mud," Shunsui said.

"Why? I've had enough of this behavior of his and you could afford to behave more like an adult yourself," Byakuya shot back.

"Well, you could afford to lighten-up a bit and not be such a stick in the mud. Maybe you should get a woman of your own. It might do you a world of good," Shunsui shot back.

"And just where might you suggest I find one? Would you recommend I try the same street corner that Sousuke found that girl?" Byakuya asked irritated with the man.

"Well it certainly couldn't hurt. As long as she isn't Lizzy Borden or Typhoid Mary, I doubt you could do any worse than you are now," Shunsui shot back.

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that you would make such a distasteful suggestion. Considering your own immature behavior I should expect you to make such statements," Byakuya responded.

"Well, it's a true statement. Then again, you aren't doing anything at all," Shunsui answered.

"So you would suggest I hire some common streetwalker for her services like some common pervert?" Byakuya asked.

"Why not? It might actually do you some good to get some action in the bedroom, or the backseat of a limo or anywhere else for that matter," Shunsui added.

"Is that so? Shall I ask Sousuke's lady of the evening for a recommendation? Perhaps ask her to put in a good word for me with one of her coworkers? Perhaps you might even recommend that I hire her for an evening. Would you recommend I do that?" Byakuya asked sarcastically.

"Why not? Like I said, it might do you a world of good. She's quite a little cutie and you could do worse than that little sweetie," Shunsui said.

* * *

Momo couldn't believe what she was hearing. Nanao was shocked to hear it too.

'I can't believe what they're saying!' Momo thought, feeling like crying or screaming or both.

'i don't know why I'm the least bit surprised by what these men are saying. Though I am a bit surprised that Juushiro doesn't have enough decency to step in and break this up! Hell, I'm surprised that Sousuke doesn't have enough decency to standup for that poor girl!' Nanao thought feeling angry. She only felt angrier when she saw the hurt expression on Momo's face.

"On second thought, maybe I would like to get that drink," Momo said sounding like she was going to cry her eyes out.

"That may be a good idea," Nanao said.

The two women left the dinning room and headed back to the bar.

* * *

_Uh-oh, boys!_

_What did you say to make Nanao and Cinderella leave the room?_

_We were unable to get a look at her face, but judging by her body language Cinderella looks like she's about ready to cry!_

_And judging the look of anger and concern on Nanao's face thats probably the case._

_Be careful, boys!_

_Nanao might be willing to lash out at you boys for whatever cruel or insensitive things you had to say about Cinderella!_

_She seems quite concerned about the little girl._

_They seem to be quite chummy together__._

_Are we making friends girls?_

_Are we planning on staying in touch?_

_Maybe go out and do a little shopping together?_

_Maybe get a cup of coffee together?_

_If so we might be able to get a look at Cinderella's face._

_It might not be a bad idea, Nanao._

_Its nice to see you show a softer side of yourself and Cinderella could probably use a friend._

_Lets hope that whatever the girls heard you boys say doesn't ruin the evening, for your friendships!_

_We'll have to watch and see how this turns out._

_In the meantime, Nanao and Cinderella seem to be heading for the bar._

_Lets see if we can get a look at her face._

_And let's hope that Cinderella doesn't get too drunk to fulfill the rest of her duties for Sousuke this evening._

_I'm sure that would ruin the evening if you threw up on your employer this evening._

_Sousuke might take it the wrong way._

_And judging by how tense that conversation looks, Sousuke will need you to be at your best later tonight._

_Lets watch and see how things turn out._

* * *

"I think you've both said enough on the subject. I know I'm not the most moral man but what's done is done and there's nothing can be done to change that," Sousuke said.

"I agree with Sousuke. I think that putting women down the way the two of you are is rather unfair on your part," Juushiro said.

"Indeed. Especially in light of the fact that none of them are here to defend themselves," Sousuke pointed out.

"I wasn't saying it to put them down. If anything I meant it as a compliment," Shunsui said.

"How can such statements be considered compliments?" Sousuke asked.

"Because Byakuya here is completely incapable of relaxing and loosening up. It would be nearly impossible to do in fact. Anyone who can get him to loosen up and relax would be deserving of a Nobel Peace Prize," Shunsui said.

Byakuya glared at Shunsui. Juushiro chuckled a little and Sousuke smirked and chuckled slightly.

* * *

_What have we here?_

_Byakuya looks annoyed while Shunsui, Juushiro and Sousuke all look amused._

_What did you say to lighten up the mood while at the same time making Byakuya there look even more annoyed than before?_

_Whatever it was, its a shame that the girls weren't there to hear it._

_If so, maybe Cinderella wouldn't have been so upset by what was said._

* * *

Meanwhile, Nanao and Momo returned to the bar and took seats next to each other.

"I'm sorry about what the men said. Though in their defense, it did sound like they had been talking on the subject for awhile. We may have walked in time to hear enough of what they were saying to misunderstand the intent," Nanao said trying to consul the young woman.

"Thank you, Nanao. You're probably right. I would like to avoid them for at least a little while this evening," Momo said calmly.

"I agree. I have to put up with Shunsui on a daily basis and I need a little break from him," Nanao said in agreement.

"Nemu," Nanao said, calling the bartender's attention.

"Another glass of wine, Nanao?" Nemu asked politely.

"Yes, thank you. What would you like, Momo?"

"I think I'd like another Peach Bellini please," Momo said.

"Put them on Mr. Aizen's tab," Nanao said.

"No, don't do that," Momo said shocked that Nanao would say such a thing.

"Fine. Nemu, make that Shunsui's tab," Nanao said.

"Yes, ma'am," Nemu said pouring Nanao's drink before starting on Momo's drink.

"Don't worry. Shunsui won't mind. Trust me, he would've told us to put it on his tab," Nanao assured the younger woman.

"Alright," Momo said.

"Now why don't we talk about something else," Nanao suggested.

"Alright. What would you like to talk about?" Momo asked.

"Well, what do you like to do for fun?"

"Well, I do enjoy cooking and drawing. Of course, I don't have a lot of opportunities to do a whole lot of either," Momo said.

"I remember you saying that you worked a lot of part time jobs and a lot of over time. I imagine that doing so would take up a lot of your time," Nanao said sympathetically.

"What do you like to do for fun?" Momo asked.

Nemu served the women their drinks. Nanao tipped her before turning her attention back to Momo.

"I like to read and go shopping. I have do have a full time job making sure that things run smoothly at work and I usually end up doing most of the paper work so I sometimes don't a whole lot of time to do much of the latter," Nanao said before taking a sip of wine.

"I like to read a lot too and in the evening that's usually all I have time to do other than make dinner. What kind of job do you have? I mean what line of business are you in?" Momo asked before taking a sip of her own drink.

"I'm Shunsui's assistant and he owns one of the major distilleries in the country," Nanao explained.

"Wow. It sounds like a hard job," Momo said.

"It's easy compared to keeping Shunsui out of trouble," Nanao said.

"Is it really that bad?" Momo asked.

"Sometimes. Don't get me wrong. Shunsui is a good man and he's decent enough. But sometimes he can be a handful. But he can be such a womanizer at times. Mind you, he isn't as bad as Mr. Aizen. Unlike that man, Shunsui has never hired a prostitute. At least not while I've been working for him," Nanao said.

"I see," Momo said looking away a little embarrassed by Nanao's statement.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings," Nanao said apologizing when she realized that she had hit a nerve.

"It's alright. Besides, that is what I am now," Momo said assuringly.

"Good evening ladies," said a man who came up to sit next to Momo.

"How much are you the two of you charging? How much for both of you?"

"Pardon me?" Momo asked.

"Don't play coy with me. Its obvious that you're a hooker and obviously your friend is too," the man said grabbing hold of her wrist.

Momo gasped in surprise, her eyes widening in horror. She tried to get free of the man's grasp and didn't see the Gossip Girl follower waiting to get a clear view of her face. Fortunately they were having trouble getting it.

Nanao was disgusted and appalled by this man's actions. She got up from her seat and moved over and broke Momo away from the man's grip. Blocking the Gossip Girl follower's view.

"Get your dirty hands off her!" Nanao yelled at him was she broke his grip on the girl's wrist. She then turned her attention to the accosted young woman who was rubbing her wrist.

"Are you alright?"

"Yes, thank you," Momo replied as she continued to rub her wrist, wincing a little at the pain.

"Good," Nanao responded before turning her attention back to the man.

"Who the hell do you think you are? What the hell makes you think you can treat someone that way?" Nanao practically yelled at the man.

"What's the big deal? It's obvious what you two do for a living. I was only offering the two of you a job for the evening. What are you getting your panties all up in a bunch about?"

This man's statements made Nanao furious.

Removing her glasses, Nanao gave the man a frightening glare.

"Now you listen to me, I'm no prostitute and even if my friend and I were that doesn't give you or anyone else the right to treat us like that. Now, if you don't mind, my friend and I would like to get back to our conversation without being harassed by a pervert like you," Nanao said in a low dangerous tone of voice.

Nanao's back was to Momo so she couldn't see Nanao's face. She did however see the expression on the man's face and he looked a little shaken.

"My apologies, ladies," the man said backing-off.

Nanao put her glasses back on and was about to turn back to Momo when she saw her! The Gossip Girl follower had moved to get a different angle and it payed off for them as the snapped a picture of Momo!

"Momo, look away and keep your face out of view. I'll be right back," Nanao said.

"Alright," Momo said looking away to hide her face.

"Good," Nanao said before going after the green haired girl that she recognized as Mashiro, one of Kensei's assistants. She managed to catch her and snatch away her iPhone before she had a chance to post a picture of the other girl.

"Hey! What are you doing, Nanao?"

"Stopping you from ruining that girl's life," Nanao answered as she went to work scanning through the pictures on the phone to find any and all pictures of Momo.

"Hey! Give that back, Nanao!" Mashiro demanded.

Nanao glared at the girl over the phone, continuing to scan the phone with one eye while watching the green haired pinhead with the other.

"Here it is," she said upon finding it.

"Give me that, Nanao," Mashiro demanded again. She moved to snatch the phone away from Nanao. Nanao moved out of the way.

"It's a nice picture of her," Nanao said, looking at the picture and then letting the owner of the device have a look before turning it back to herself in order to take care of it.

"It's too bad that no one else is going to see it," Nanao said before deleting it.

"Who do you think you are? That's my phone and you have no right to do that," Mashiro snapped.

"And you have no right to harass that girl or paint a target on her back by posting her face on that disgusting blog or any other for that matter," Nanao said as she continued to scan the pictures on the device in order to ensure that there weren't any other pictures of Momo on it.

When she was satisfied that she had gotten rid of the only one on the offending device she returned it to the owner.

"Here's your phone back. Now stay away from that girl," Nanao warned.

"You're not the boss of me! You can't tell me what I can and can't do!" Mashiro snapped.

Nanao removed her glasses again and gave Mashiro the same glare that she gave the man who had harassed Momo.

"If you know what's good for you you'll back-off! I don't want to see you anywhere near her. Now go away," Nanao said giving her a death glare.

Mashiro shrank away and left. Nanao donned her glasses again and turned to leave. That's when she noticed another girl doing something on their own iPhone. A few moments later she heard an alert on her own iPhone. Accessing the site, she scanned through and saw several pictures of Momo on the site. She panicked and started heading back to the bar. Along the way she scanned the photos to see how many pictures there were and assess the damage.

'What's going to happen to that girl if someone recognizes her from any of these pictures?' Nanao thought as she looked through them.

As she hurried back to rejoin Momo she started to relax. She scanned both the photos and the blogs and found that there weren't any pictures of Momo's face and comments indicating that no one had been able to get a clear shot of her face.

'Maybe she will still be able to show her face in public after this is all over,' Nanao thought to herself as she entered the bar.

"Is everything alright?" Momo asked when Nanao got back and took her seat next to the younger woman.

"I think so. I saw someone I know who is also a Gossip Girl follower. Don't worry, she did get a picture of you, but I caught up with her and deleted it," Nanao assured her as glanced from her iPhone and she saw the panic on Momo's face.

"Are you sure that you were able to delete it in time?" Momo asked sounding worried.

"I'm not sure yet. Right now I'm looking through the pictures and posts on the site. So far none of the pictures show your face and the posts indicate that no one has been able to get one so far," Nanao said.

"That's a relief," Momo said as she let out a sigh of relief.

Nanao smiled as she saw that relieved look on the girl's face. But that smile disappeared when she saw the more recent posts. Momo noticed the change of expression and she started to feel the panic return.

"What's wrong?" Momo asked terror evident in her voice.

"Don't worry, Momo. It's not you, it's me," Nanao explained.

"What do you mean?" Momo asked confused.

"The latest pictures. They aren't of you," Nanao said showing her the site.

"They're of me," she said as Momo looked and saw the photos of Nanao snatching an iPhone from a green haired woman. She saw more of her with the green haired woman fighting over the device.

"This because you were getting rid of the picture of me. Isn't it?" Momo asked.

"Yes. Yes it is," Nanao admitted.

"I'm so sorry about of this. You don't deserve having people harass you like this," Momo said apologetically.

"Don't worry about it. Unfortunately this isn't the first time I had my picture posted on this site. It's nothing new unfortunately," Nanao admitted.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Momo said.

"Don't worry about it. It'll be alright. For now I'm just worried about you and making sure that you don't get yourself any more trouble than you already have," Nanao assured her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"Thank you, Nanao. You're very kind for worrying about me like this," Momo said smiling appreciatively.

"Let's have our drinks before they get warm," Nanao said lifting her glass.

"Yes, that would probably be best," Momo said picking up her own.

"Let's have a toast," Nanao said.

"Alright. What are we toasting?" Momo asked.

"How about standing up to bullies?" Nanao suggested, referring to Momo's earlier statement to Byakuya.

"Yes. Thats a good thing to toast to," Momo agreed cheerily.

"So here's to standing up to bullies," Nanao said raising her glass.

"Here here," Momo said raising her own glass.

They clinked glasses and took a sip of their respective drinks.

"Actually, I think I would like to propose a toast of my own," Momo said.

"What would you like to toast?" Nanao asked.

"To kindness, concern and consideration of others. To those who look out and defend people who can't defend themselves," Momo said raising her glass.

Nanao smiled at this.

"Here here," she said.

They clinked glasses again and took another sip.

"You know want to know something?" Momo asked.

"What is it?" Nanao asked.

"Well, even though I'm not spending it with my friends and in spite of the circumstances, I've still had a rather enjoyable birthday. Even though a lot of bad things happened for me today, things are better than I expected them to be when I found out that they were going to let me go at the factory today," Momo admitted.

"Is that so?" Nanao asked.

"Yes. Yes it is," Momo answered.

"I'm happy to hear it. From what you told me, you deserve to have an enjoyable birthday," Nanao said smiling as she raised her glass again. Momo raised her own. They toasted again and drank to it.

"I just remembered," Nanao said putting down her drink and picking up her iPhone.

"What is it?" Momo asked.

"You asked me earlier if I knew how long a woman is suppose to bleed after she loses her virginity," Nanao said looking it up again.

"Oh, right. I forgot all about it," Momo said blushing deeply.

"Indeed, after hearing what the men were saying I completely forgot about looking up the answer to your question. It says here that it varies from woman to woman. Some only bleed for a few hours, others can bleed for up to a week," Nanao said.

"Indeed. I felt rather embarrassed by what we overheard. That's good to know," Momo said blushing still.

"It also says that for some women it stops after having sex a second time," Nanao said reading further.

"Well that's a good thing," Momo said.

"Yes. I would imagine that if you and Mr. Aizen do in fact have sex again later this evening it would be more convenient for you if it would stop before then. If not though, than having sex with him a second time would at least serve a purpose if it takes care of the bleeding," Nanao said.

"Perhaps, but I had already agreed ahead of time that I would be, rendering my services both before dinner and after dinner," Momo said as she continued to blush deeply.

"If you ask me, I think he should let you off the hook on that," Nanao said.

"You're very kind, but I can't go back on what I agreed to do. I was raised to complete any job I agree to," Momo explained.

"Even so, I think you've been through enough already and if Mr. Aizen had any decency he wouldn't make you go through that again," Nanao said.

"Mr. Aizen didn't make me do what we did earlier this evening and I'm sure he won't make me do anything later this evening. I kept telling him I was alright with it and he continued to give every opportunity to change my mind," Momo explained.

"That maybe, but I think you've already been through enough and you shouldn't be forced to further humiliate yourself like that. I don't care what he's going to pay you, there is no reason for you to endure more humiliation tonight. Not after the birthday you've had," Nanao said.

"I'm really appreciate your concern, but I'm sure that Mr. Aizen has no intention of forcing me to do anything and I'm sure that he'll give me just as many opportunities to change my mind if I want to. Don't worry, if I'm uncomfortable or want to stop later this evening than I'll tell Mr. Aizen," Momo assured her.

* * *

_Well, well, well. What do we have here? Sources say that someone did manage to get a picture showing Cinderella's face. Unfortunately Nanao caught up to them and deleted the picture before it could be posted._

_ What's going on, Nanao? You seem rather protective of the girl. You never seemed to care about any of Sousuke's previous dates. Are you growing soft on us? And what did you overhear the men say to make you and Cinderella go back to the bar rather than rejoining them? Not your typical business dinner._

_By the way, what could you too girls be toasting?_

_Are we making friends here?_

* * *

"Very well. But if something happens," Nanao took a card out of her purse.

"Call me," Nanao added as she handed the card to her.

"Thank you, Nanao, but I'm sure I won't need it tonight though," Momo said.

"Maybe so, but if you need someone to talk to about this or if something happens some time in the future and for whatever reason your friends can't help you or if you still can't talk to them about this, then call me.

"Thank you, Nanao. I'll call you if I do need help," Momo said taking the card and putting it in her wallet.

Just then, Nanao's iPhone rang.

"Yes, Shunsui?" Nanao said answering her phone.

"Hey, little Nanao. Where did you girls disappear too?" Shunsui asked.

"I apologize. Momo and I went to the bar to get ourselves something to drink and talk," Nanao said apologetically.

"Really? I take it you girls are getting along well," Shunsui said.

"Yes, sir. We're getting along quite well," Nanao answered.

"Well that's good to hear. We're about to finish up here. So you girls just enjoy your girl talk and your drinks, and put them on my tab. We'll come get you girls when we're ready to leave," Shunsui said.

"Thank you, Shunsui. I already did," Nanao said.

"That's my girl," Shunsui said with a chuckle before hanging-up.

Nanao rolled her eyes at her boss's statement before putting the device down and turning her attention back to the other girl.

"Who was that?" Momo asked.

"That was my boss, he told us to enjoy our talk and to put the drinks on his tab," Nanao informed her.

"That was nice of him. Shouldn't we join them?" Momo asked.

"That won't be necessary, he said that they would come and get us when it's time to leave," Nanao said.

"Alright," Momo said.

* * *

Read and review people. I might start withholding chapters if I don't get any feedback.


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